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First Paleomagnetic Record of the Matuyama-Brunhes Transition in the Loess-Paleosol Series of Tajikistan

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Problems of Geocosmos—2022 (ICS 2022)

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Abstract

Detailed paleomagnetic records of the Matuyama-Brunhes (M/B) magnetic polarity transition in continuous sedimentary sequences both provide a geochronological constraint on the sequence and expand our knowledge of the reversal process. Although the age of the Matuyama-Brunhes reversal has been studied in detail, some high-resolution geological archives show a discrepancy in the actual and expected position of the M/B boundary, e. g. loess-paleosol sequences of Central Asia and China. We have carried out a detailed paleomagnetic study of the M/B transition in the loess-paleosol sequence at the Kuldara site, Tajikistan, the first such study in the region. Matuyama-Brunhes transition at the Kuldara site encompasses 3 m thick zone, and includes 7 polarity flips and zones with anomalous directions. The transition zone begins in the MIS 20 loess and ends in the lowermost part of the MIS 19 warm stage. Preliminary duration estimate for the transition is ~22 kyr, and its lower and upper limits have older ages than expected (809–787 ka). However, the last reliable zone of reverse polarity is found at the beginning of MIS 19, reported for the first time for this loess-paleosol section. Furthermore, we have found an excursion (852–847 ka) ~38 kyr prior to the reversal which manifests itself as a 22 cm thick zone with anomalous directions and instable paleomagnetic signal. Nevertheless, the magnetic reversal event appears somewhat older compared to other sedimentary and volcanic records of the M/B transition. Delayed acquisition or superimposed younger magnetization in the studied loesses may be the reason for this discrepancy, and requires further study.

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Acknowledgements

We would like thank Donish Institute of history, archaeology and ethnography NAST, Dushanbe, for opportunity to work at Tajik loess palaeolithic site Kuldara. We acknowledge P.M. Sosin for fruitful discussion of regional loess stratigraphy during field works and lithological description of the section. This paper was greatly improved by thorough and constructive comments from two anonymous reviewers and editor Andrei Kosterov.

Funding

This work is carried out within the state assignment of Schmidt IPE RAS and supported by the Russian Science Foundation under grant 22–18-00568.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Schmidt Institute of Physics of the Earth RAS, B. Gruzinskaya 10, 123242, Moscow, Russia

    Ekaterina Kulakova

  2. Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography SB RAS, Acad. Lavrentiev Avenue 17, 630090, Novosibirsk, Russia

    Ekaterina Kulakova & Redzhep Kurbanov

  3. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory 1, 119991, Moscow, Russia

    Redzhep Kurbanov

  4. Institute of Geography RAS, Staromonetniy Lane 29, 119017, Moscow, Russia

    Redzhep Kurbanov

Authors
  1. Ekaterina Kulakova
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  2. Redzhep Kurbanov
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Correspondence to Ekaterina Kulakova .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Saint Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia

    Andrei Kosterov

  2. Saint Petersburg State University, St. Petersburg, Russia

    Evgeniya Lyskova

  3. Saint Petersburg State University, St.Petersburg, Russia

    Irina Mironova

  4. Saint Petersburg State University, St.Petersburg, Russia

    Sergey Apatenkov

  5. Kola Branch of Geophysical Survey RAS, Apatity, Russia

    Sergey Baranov

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Kulakova, E., Kurbanov, R. (2023). First Paleomagnetic Record of the Matuyama-Brunhes Transition in the Loess-Paleosol Series of Tajikistan. In: Kosterov, A., Lyskova, E., Mironova, I., Apatenkov, S., Baranov, S. (eds) Problems of Geocosmos—2022. ICS 2022. Springer Proceedings in Earth and Environmental Sciences. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-40728-4_6

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