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Optically-stimulated-luminescence ages and paleo-environmental implications of relict frost wedges in north–central Bohemia, Czech Republic

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posted on 2024-10-30, 09:29 authored by Tomáš Uxa, Marek Křížek, David Krause, Piotr Moska, Julian MurtonJulian Murton
Relict frost wedges are widespread and valuable indicators of past environmental conditions that have been extensively dated across central and western European lowlands over the past few decades, but their timing in the Czech Republic is poorly known. Here, we present optically-stimulated-luminescence (OSL) ages for seven relict frost wedges situated at four study sites in north–central Bohemia, Czech Republic (49.9992–50.4956°N, 13.3736–16.0011°E, 230–350 m above sea level). The OSL ages indicate that the frost wedges developed during two phases in marine isotope stage 2: an older phase that peaked at 23.6 ± 2.9 ka and a younger phase that peaked at 16.1 ± 1.3 ka. Both phases probably experienced cold, dry and windy conditions that were mostly associated with <0°C mean annual air and ground temperatures and the presence of at least discontinuous permafrost, which is in line with similar central and western European records and other paleo-environmental archives. The new OSL ages constitute the first extended dataset on the timing of frost wedges in this undersampled area between the Fennoscandian and Alpine ice sheets, which is essential for reconstructing past permafrost extents and climate conditions, as well as for validating models of past permafrost dynamics in central Europe.

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Published version

Journal

Permafrost and Periglacial Processes

ISSN

1045-6740

Publisher

Wiley

Issue

3

Volume

35

Page range

294-383

Department affiliated with

  • Geography Publications

Institution

University of Sussex

Full text available

  • Yes

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes