Geochemical, sedimentological and chronological considerations of several Late Quaternary key marker tephra of Carpathian origin

Literature
Maintained by Alina Blume, Janina Bösken
Created at 24.6.2020

Abstract

The usefulness of tephra in addressing chronostratigraphic issues has gained considerable advance. Motivated by the premise that the Carpathian volcanism may have played an important role in providing Late Quaternary tephra marker horizons for central-eastern Europe, we initially surveyed several loess and loess-derivate profiles harboring pyroclastic fall and flow deposits in both proximal and more distal locations nearby Ciomadul, the youngest volcanic center in Romania. Here we discuss results of the geochemical, chronological, and sedimentological investigations of Targu Secuiesc loess profile, circa 25 km east of Ciomadul volcano. Through multi-method luminescence dating we show that the circa 15 m thick sequence preserves an environmental record covering the Last Glacial Cycle. Geochemical and mineralogical data allow the identification of three key tephra units of rhyolitic composition, clearly pointing to resurgent eruptions of geochemically rather similar magmas of the Ciomadul volcano. Detailed investigations helped to establish petrological affinities for defining provenances and precise correlations of these tephra layers with published data (Karátson et al., 2016; Wulf et al., 2016). Tephra ages have been constrained indirectly by luminescence and radiocarbon dating of embedding deposits (Karatson et al., 2016; this work), or through direct zircon dating of the pyroclastic products (Harangi et al., 2015). These proximal tephra are geochemically similar to some distal volcanic ashes from loess deposits in central Romania and up the loess fields north of the Black Sea. Therewith, our results confirm long-held views (Szakács and Seghedi, 1998) that the Carpathian volcanic activity could provide chronological constraints in providing marker horizons of regional significance.

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Bibliography

Unknown Author (2018): Geochemical, sedimentological and chronological considerations of several Late Quaternary key marker tephra of Carpathian origin. INQUA-INTAV International Field Conference and Workshop - Crossing New Frontiers - Tephra Hunt in Transylvania, INTAV, 24.06.-29.06.2018, Moieciu de Sus, Romania

key2018
organizationINQUA-INTAV International Field Conference and Workshop - Crossing New Frontiers - Tephra Hunt in Transylvania, INTAV, 24.06.-29.06.2018, Moieciu de Sus, Romania
typeposter
year2018
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