Late Quaternary Paleoclimate History From Saline Lakes of the Andes, 23-26 Degrees South-Paleohydrology, and Geochemical Proxies

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Abstract ATM-9709786 Lowenstein, Tim K. State University of New York at Binghamton ATM-9709771 Jordan, Teresa E. Cornell University Title: Late Quaternary Paleoclimate History from Saline Lakes of the Arid Andes, 23-26o South - Paleohydrology and Geochemical Proxies This award will support the investigation of climate proxies from evaporite-bearing sediment cores in closed drainage basins of the arid subtropical high Andes. A 100-m-long core from the Atacama salt pan (salar) (2300 m elevation on western flank of the Andes) is available for detailed study, and cores from Rincon and Hombre Muerto salars in the neighboring Puna plateau (elevations above 3800 m) will also be evaluated. Precipitation in the region is largely related to the behavior of the Amazonian monsoonal system and frontal systems sourced in the westerlies. Temporal variability in climate throughout tropical and subtropical South America, including precipitation variations in the Puna/Atacama desert region, is related to ENSO patterns. Paleoclimate fluctuations in the Atacama/Puna region would reflect changes in positions and strengths of all controlling factors, but dominated by the intensity and duration of past ENSO activity. The paleoclimate record will be retrieved from closed basin sediments, which preserve a sensitive record of climate change and variations in ratio of basin inflow to evaporation.