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Late Quaternary glacial and climate history of the Pamir Mountains derived from cosmogenic 10Be exposure ages

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Roland Zech ,
Uwe Abramowski ,
Bruno Glaser ,
Pjotr Sosin ,
Peter W. Kubik  and
Wolfgang Zech
Roland Zech*
Affiliation:
Institute of Soil Science and Soil Geography, University of Bayreuth, D-95440 Bayreuth, Germany
Uwe Abramowski
Affiliation:
Institute of Soil Science and Soil Geography, University of Bayreuth, D-95440 Bayreuth, Germany
Bruno Glaser
Affiliation:
Institute of Soil Science and Soil Geography, University of Bayreuth, D-95440 Bayreuth, Germany
Pjotr Sosin
Affiliation:
Institute of Soil Science, Tajik Academy of Agriculture, Dushanbe, Tajikistan
Peter W. Kubik
Affiliation:
Paul Scherrer Institute c/o Institute of Particle Physics, ETH Zurich, CH-8093 Zurich, Switzerland
Wolfgang Zech
Affiliation:
Institute of Soil Science and Soil Geography, University of Bayreuth, D-95440 Bayreuth, Germany
*
* Corresponding author. E-mail address:godotz@gmx.de (R. Zech).
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Abstract

Moraines southwest of Lake Yashilkul, Pamir, Tajikistan, were dated using 10Be exposure ages of boulder surfaces. We found evidence for (1) an extensive glaciation ∼60,000 yr ago; (2) a less extensive glacial advance, which deposited a characteristic hummocky moraine lobe with exposure ages ranging from ∼11,000 to 47,000 yr, probably deposited at or before 47,000 yr ago; and (3) lateral moraines with exposure ages of ∼40,000 yr, 27,000 yr and 19,000 yr, respectively. Increasing aridity in the Pamir is most likely responsible for the progressively limited extent of the glaciers during the Late Pleistocene.

Keywords

Cosmogenic nuclides10BeExposure datingGlacial chronologyPamir
Type
Research Article
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 64 , Issue 2 , September 2005 , pp. 212 - 220
Copyright
Copyright © University of Washington

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