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Temporal Variations of Radiocarbon Reservoir Ages in the South Pacific Ocean during the Holocene

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 February 2016

G S Burr ,
C Vance Haynes ,
Chuan-Chou Shen ,
Fred Taylor ,
Yu-Wei Chang ,
J W Beck ,
Vicki Nguyen  and
Weijian Zhou
G S Burr*
Affiliation:
Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Earth Environment, Xi'an, China (PRC) University of Arizona, Physics Department, Tucson, AZ 85721-0081, USA
C Vance Haynes
Affiliation:
University of Arizona, School of Anthropology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
Chuan-Chou Shen
Affiliation:
National Taiwan University, High-Precision Mass Spectrometry and Environmental Change Laboratory (HISPEC), Department of Geosciences, Taipei, Taiwan (ROC)
Fred Taylor
Affiliation:
Institute for Geophysics, J.J. Pickle Research Campus, Bldg. 196, 10100 Burnet Rd. (R2200), Austin, TX 78758-4445, USA
Yu-Wei Chang
Affiliation:
National Taiwan University, High-Precision Mass Spectrometry and Environmental Change Laboratory (HISPEC), Department of Geosciences, Taipei, Taiwan (ROC)
J W Beck
Affiliation:
University of Arizona, Physics Department, Tucson, AZ 85721-0081, USA
Vicki Nguyen
Affiliation:
University of Arizona, Physics Department, Tucson, AZ 85721-0081, USA
Weijian Zhou
Affiliation:
Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Earth Environment, Xi'an, China (PRC)
*
3Corresponding author. Email: burr@email.arizona.edu.
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Abstract

This article discusses the magnitude and rate of change of radiocarbon reservoir ages from the surface ocean in the South Pacific during the Holocene. 14C reservoir ages are calculated from paired U/Th and 14C measurements. Seventeen pairs of coral dates were determined from samples collected on Rendova and Tetepare Islands, in the Solomon Islands, and from Espiritu Santo Island, Vanuatu. The samples are all Holocene in age, with 230Th ages ranging from about 400 to 9400 BP. Samples were collected as drill cores or surface outcrops. About half of the surface samples appear to have incorporated modern carbon through postdepositional recrystallization. Two of the core samples were also affected by carbon exchange. The Holocene 14C reservoir ages observed in this data set show stable values for the last 3000 yr, and substantial variability from 5000–6000 BP (~100 to ~950 14C yr). Persistent low values (<200 14C yr) were observed for samples from 7000–8000 BP. We attribute these variations to temporal changes in lateral advection and vertical mixing, and possibly to local environmental conditions related to the interplay between sea-level rise and episodic uplift, characteristic of all the coral localities.

Type
Articles
Information
Radiocarbon , Volume 57 , Issue 4 , 2015 , pp. 507 - 515
Copyright
Copyright © 2015 by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona 

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References

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