Can in situ cosmogenic ¹⁴C be used to assess the influence of clast recycling on exposure dating of ice retreat in Antarctica?

White, D., Fulop, R., Bishop, P., Mackintosh, A. and Cook, G. (2011) Can in situ cosmogenic ¹⁴C be used to assess the influence of clast recycling on exposure dating of ice retreat in Antarctica? Quaternary Geochronology, 6(3-4), pp. 289-294. (doi: 10.1016/j.quageo.2011.03.004)

Abstract

Cosmogenic nuclide exposure dating of glacial clasts is becoming a common and robust method for reconstructing the history of glaciers and ice sheets. In Antarctica, however, many samples exhibit cosmogenic nuclide ‘inheritance’ as a result of sediment recycling and exposure to cosmic radiation during previous ice free periods. In-situ cosmogenic ¹⁴C, in combination with longer lived nuclides such as ¹⁰Be, can be used to detect inheritance because the relatively short half-life of ¹⁴C means that in-situ 14C acquired in exposure during previous interglacials decays away while the sample locality is covered by ice during the subsequent glacial. Measurements of in-situ ¹⁴C in clasts from the last deglaciation of the Framnes Mountains in East Antarctica provide deglaciation ages that are concordant with existing ²⁶Al and ¹⁰Be ages, suggesting that in this area, the younger population of erratics contain limited inheritance.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Cook, Professor Gordon and Bishop, Professor Paul
• Authors: White, D., Fulop, R., Bishop, P., Mackintosh, A., and Cook, G.
• Subjects: Q Science > QE Geology
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Geographical and Earth Sciences > Earth Sciences
• Research Group: Earth Systems
• Journal Name: Quaternary Geochronology
• Journal Abbr.: Quat Geochron
• Publisher: Elsevier BV
• ISSN: 1871-1014
• Published Online: 29 March 2011