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Extinct groundwater discharge locality in the Eldorado Valley; eastern Mojave Desert, Nevada, USA

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Abstract

Dry lakes are common environmental matrixes of hydrographically closed (endorheic) valleys in western North America’s deserts. Groundwater discharge localities that form in arid regions are excellent data sources, recording hydrological responses to regional and global climate changes. This research brings geomorphic, geochemical, and stratigraphic evidence from a paleo-age groundwater discharge locality in the Eldorado Valley of extreme southern Nevada, U.S.A. Sediments and stratigraphy suggest that a dynamic groundwater discharge complex formed in response to wet and dry climate cycling within the Eldorado Valley. This groundwater discharge locality was likely present on an annual to decadal scale, fed by groundwater rather than river sources, justifying the higher metal concentrations in deeper sediment layers. The 14C dating further indicate this system was actively cycling between 13.9 and 4.88 ka cal yrs BP. Thermal regimes of warm-seasonal precipitation anomalies during the late Pleistocene to Holocene provided ideal conditions for a dynamic ecosystem due to a groundwater discharge locality located at the Eldorado Dry Playa.

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Acknowledgements

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration provided funding for this research through the Nevada NASA Space Grant Consortium (Grant No. NNX15A102H-18-58). The authors would like to thank the personnel of the city of Boulder City, Nevada for their cooperation during this research. We would also like to thank the journal reviewers and Dr. David M Miller (USGS) whose time and expertise improved this manuscript.

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  1. Department of Physical Sciences, College of Southern Nevada, North Las Vegas, USA

    Douglas B. Sims, Amanda C. Hudson, John E. Keller, Paul McBurnett, Giavanna M. Fernandez, Juan Garcia-Hernandez, Bailey D. Kesl & Flavio W. Rodriguez

  2. Department of Chemistry, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV, 89054, USA

    David Ferrari & Sean G. Torres

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Sims, D.B., Hudson, A.C., Keller, J.E. et al. Extinct groundwater discharge locality in the Eldorado Valley; eastern Mojave Desert, Nevada, USA. J. Sediment. Environ. 7, 175–198 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43217-022-00093-8

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