Late Quaternary Vegetation History and Depositional Environment of the Yedoma Sections of the Lower Kolyma; Northeast Siberia - Feasibility Study

该奖项支持西伯利亚东北部全新世泥炭中的古植物材料研究。 目前，关于俄罗斯这一地区过去的气候和环境条件的信息很少。 这项工作的重点是从较低的科雷马河阶地沉积物，称为Yedoma沉积物，已被解剖的热岩溶活动和河流侵蚀的样本。 沉积物由中更新世至晚更新世的淤泥层组成，凹陷处被全新世泥炭覆盖。 我们的目标是测试这些存款产生古气候和古环境条件的代理记录的效用。 如果成功，这项工作将获得有关俄罗斯东北部气候敏感地区环境历史的重要信息。 这项工作构成了由国家地理学会资助的一个实地项目的古植物学分析。 这项工作将包括花粉和孢子的分析，以及真菌和藻类遗骸的分析。 这些信息将是重建该地区晚更新世和全新世沉积和环境条件的关键组成部分。 此外，这项工作有很大的潜力，扩大了解耦合高纬度植被景观气候系统。

This award supports a study of paleobotanical material in Holocene peat from northeastern Siberia. At present, there is little information about past climatic and environmental conditions in this part of Russia. This work focuses on samples from the lower Kolyma River terrace deposits, called Yedoma deposits, which have been dissected by thermokarst activity and river erosion. The deposits consist of mid to late Pleistocene silt layers capped in depressions by Holocene peat. The goal is to test the utility of these deposits for yielding proxy records of paleoclimatic and paleoenvironmental conditions. If successful this work will yield important information on the environmental history of a climatically sensitive region of the Russian northeast. This work constitutes the paleobotanical analyses of a field program funded by the National Geographic Society. This work will include analysis of pollen and spores in addition to the analysis of fungal and algal remains. This information will be a key component in reconstructing the late Pleistocene and Holocene depositional and environmental conditions of this region. In addition, this work has substantial potential for expanding understanding of a coupled high-latitude vegetation-landscape-climate system.