Paleomagnetic secular variation as an intra-basinal and extra-basinal correlation tool for Pleistocene lake sediments

Conference · Thu Apr 01 00:00:00 EST 1993 · Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs; (United States)

OSTI ID:5128336

Negrini, R M; Erbes, D B ^[1]; Roberts, A P; Verosub, K L

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1. California State Univ., Bakersfield, CA (United States). Dept. of Physics and Geology

High-resolution age control is a serious problem encountered by those studying middle to late Pleistocene lake sediments, especially saline lake deposits which commonly are low in organic content obviating the use of bulk sediment radiocarbon dating. Paleomagnetic secular variation, the low amplitude variation in the direction and intensity of the Earth's magnetic field, can be recorded accurately in lake sediments. In this case if offers a high-resolution correlation tool which can be used for intra- and extra-basinal correlations. In principal, this could extend geographically as far away as marine environments enabling on to tie non-marine stratigraphy into the well-dated chronology common to marine sediment records. Examples are given of correlations based on this technique. The examples, in turn, are based on ongoing paleomagnetic and lithostratigraphic studies in the sediments of Pleistocene Lakes Chewaucan, Lahontan and previously-published paleomagnetic records from Pleistocene Lake Russell and from two un-named Pleistocene lakes. Intrabasinal correlations in Lake Chewaucan support the contention that secular variation can be used to correlate outcrop exposures (three samples per horizon) on a depth scale of several centimeters which probably corresponds to a temporal resolution of a few hundred years or less.

• OSTI ID: 5128336
• Report Number(s): CONF-9305259-; CODEN: GAAPBC
• Journal Information: Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs; (United States), Vol. 25:5; Conference: 89. annual meeting of the Cordilleran Section and the 46th annual meeting of the Rocky Mountain Section of the Geological Society of America (GSA), Reno, NV (United States), 19-21 May 1993; ISSN 0016-7592
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

58 GEOSCIENCES
GEOLOGIC DEPOSITS
AGE ESTIMATION
PALEOMAGNETISM
STRATIGRAPHY
GREAT BASIN
ARIZONA
CALIFORNIA
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
LAKES
NEVADA
PLEISTOCENE EPOCH
SEDIMENTARY BASINS
SEDIMENTS
UTAH
CENOZOIC ERA
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
EVALUATION
GEOLOGIC AGES
GEOLOGIC STRUCTURES
GEOLOGY
MAGNETISM
NORTH AMERICA
QUATERNARY PERIOD
SURFACE WATERS
USA
580000* - Geosciences