Lateglacial and Holocene chronology of climate‐driven postglacial landscape evolution in northeast Greenland

The Greenland Ice Sheet is highly sensitive to climate change, leading to significant retreat along its edges. This rapid ice loss contributes to rising sea levels and impacts the Earth's climate stability. Understanding the extent of recent glacier retreat is crucial in order to determine if it is unprecedented or within ranges of natural variability. Palaeoenvironmental studies aim to identify past glacial phases and landscape changes using advanced dating methods such as cosmic ray exposure (CRE) dating. In NE Greenland, CRE dating has helped establish the timing of glacial oscillations, yet a comprehensive understanding of glacial fluctuations during specific periods still needs to be developed. This study aims to chronologically constrain the postglacial landscape evolution of two NE Greenland valleys from the Young Sund–Tyrolerfjord area (74°N, 20–25°E) from the onset of deglaciation and throughout the Holocene to better understand glacial and postglacial changes. The chronological framework relies on 27 10 Be cosmic‐ray exposure ages that constrain our interpretation of the geomorphological features in both valleys. Inconsistencies were observed in the ages dataset, highlighting potential bias associated with nuclide inheritance and post‐glacial dynamics. Despite limitations, the CRE results confirm the general pattern observed in NE Greenland: (i) major deglaciation and disconnection of glaciers from the main glacial systems during the Lateglacial and Early Holocene with a rapid but not homogeneous deglaciation within the range from ~14.3 to 11.9 ka; (ii) no evidence of glacial activity during the Middle Holocene, probably associated with the withdrawn position of the ice masses’ fronts; and (iii) glacier expansion during the Late Holocene, with a Little Ice Age advance as the last significant period of glacial regrowth.

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Journal
Boreas
Published
2024-11-20
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/bor.12683
Citations
1
Primary Topic
Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.38

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article

Lateglacial and Holocene chronology of climate‐driven postglacial landscape evolution in northeast Greenland

Dermot Antoniades, Marc Oliva, Vincent Jomelli, José M. Fernández‐Fernández et al.
1 citations
Boreas
Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
0.38
article

Lateglacial and Holocene chronology of climate‐driven postglacial landscape evolution in northeast Greenland

Dermot Antoniades, Marc Oliva, Vincent Jomelli, José M. Fernández‐Fernández, Santiago Giralt, Julia García‐Oteyza, Irene Schimmelpfennig, Marcelo Fernandes, David Palacios
article en
1 citations

Abstract

The Greenland Ice Sheet is highly sensitive to climate change, leading to significant retreat along its edges. This rapid ice loss contributes to rising sea levels and impacts the Earth's climate stability. Understanding the extent of recent glacier retreat is crucial in order to determine if it is unprecedented or within ranges of natural variability. Palaeoenvironmental studies aim to identify past glacial phases and landscape changes using advanced dating methods such as cosmic ray exposure (CRE) dating. In NE Greenland, CRE dating has helped establish the timing of glacial oscillations, yet a comprehensive understanding of glacial fluctuations during specific periods still needs to be developed. This study aims to chronologically constrain the postglacial landscape evolution of two NE Greenland valleys from the Young Sund–Tyrolerfjord area (74°N, 20–25°E) from the onset of deglaciation and throughout the Holocene to better understand glacial and postglacial changes. The chronological framework relies on 27 10 Be cosmic‐ray exposure ages that constrain our interpretation of the geomorphological features in both valleys. Inconsistencies were observed in the ages dataset, highlighting potential bias associated with nuclide inheritance and post‐glacial dynamics. Despite limitations, the CRE results confirm the general pattern observed in NE Greenland: (i) major deglaciation and disconnection of glaciers from the main glacial systems during the Lateglacial and Early Holocene with a rapid but not homogeneous deglaciation within the range from ~14.3 to 11.9 ka; (ii) no evidence of glacial activity during the Middle Holocene, probably associated with the withdrawn position of the ice masses’ fronts; and (iii) glacier expansion during the Late Holocene, with a Little Ice Age advance as the last significant period of glacial regrowth.

BoreasVol. 54(1)
Universidad Complutense de Madrid (ES), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR), University of Lisbon (PT), Aix-Marseille Université (FR), Institut National de Recherche pour l'Agriculture, l'Alimentation et l'Environnement (FR), Centre de Recherche et d’Enseignement de Géosciences de l’Environnement (FR), Geociencias Barcelona (ES), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (FR), Université Laval (CA), Universitat de Barcelona (ES)
Agence Nationale de la Recherche, Generalitat de Catalunya, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Climate action
Openalex Percentile: Top 38%
Geology and Paleoclimatology Research
0.38
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