The genesis of Yedoma Ice Complex permafrost – grain-size endmember modeling analysis from Siberia and Alaska
The late Pleistocene Yedoma Ice Complex is an ice-rich and organic-bearing type of permafrost deposit widely distributed across Beringia and is assumed to be especially prone to deep degradation with warming temperature, which is a potential tipping point of the climate system. To better understand...
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Language: | German English |
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Copernicus Publications
2020
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Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-69-33-2020 https://doaj.org/article/9b17bb28ac4e4a89ad8c2a2595f16cc1 |
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:9b17bb28ac4e4a89ad8c2a2595f16cc1 2023-05-15T15:12:24+02:00 The genesis of Yedoma Ice Complex permafrost – grain-size endmember modeling analysis from Siberia and Alaska L. Schirrmeister E. Dietze H. Matthes G. Grosse J. Strauss S. Laboor M. Ulrich F. Kienast S. Wetterich 2020-05-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-69-33-2020 https://doaj.org/article/9b17bb28ac4e4a89ad8c2a2595f16cc1 DE EN ger eng Copernicus Publications https://www.eg-quaternary-sci-j.net/69/33/2020/egqsj-69-33-2020.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/0424-7116 https://doaj.org/toc/2199-9090 doi:10.5194/egqsj-69-33-2020 0424-7116 2199-9090 https://doaj.org/article/9b17bb28ac4e4a89ad8c2a2595f16cc1 Eiszeitalter und Gegenwart, Vol 69, Pp 33-53 (2020) Geology QE1-996.5 article 2020 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-69-33-2020 2022-12-31T13:22:25Z The late Pleistocene Yedoma Ice Complex is an ice-rich and organic-bearing type of permafrost deposit widely distributed across Beringia and is assumed to be especially prone to deep degradation with warming temperature, which is a potential tipping point of the climate system. To better understand Yedoma formation, its local characteristics, and its regional sedimentological composition, we compiled the grain-size distributions (GSDs) of 771 samples from 23 Yedoma locations across the Arctic; samples from sites located close together were pooled to form 17 study sites. In addition, we studied 160 samples from three non-Yedoma ice-wedge polygon and floodplain sites for the comparison of Yedoma samples with Holocene depositional environments. The multimodal GSDs indicate that a variety of sediment production, transport, and depositional processes were involved in Yedoma formation. To disentangle these processes, a robust endmember modeling analysis (rEMMA) was performed. Nine robust grain-size endmembers (rEMs) characterize Yedoma deposits across Beringia. The study sites of Yedoma deposits were finally classified using cluster analysis. The resulting four clusters consisted of two to five sites that are distributed randomly across northeastern Siberia and Alaska, suggesting that the differences are associated with rather local conditions. In contrast to prior studies suggesting a largely aeolian contribution to Yedoma sedimentation, the wide range of rEMs indicates that aeolian sedimentation processes cannot explain the entire variability found in GSDs of Yedoma deposits. Instead, Yedoma sedimentation is controlled by local conditions such as source rocks and weathering processes, nearby paleotopography, and diverse sediment transport processes. Our findings support the hypothesis of a polygenetic Yedoma origin involving alluvial, fluvial, and niveo-aeolian transport; accumulation in ponding waters; and in situ frost weathering as well as postdepositional processes of solifluction, cryoturbation, and ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Ice permafrost wedge* Alaska Beringia Siberia Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Arctic Remma ENVELOPE(13.910,13.910,66.011,66.011) E&G Quaternary Science Journal 69 1 33 53 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
German English |
topic |
Geology QE1-996.5 |
spellingShingle |
Geology QE1-996.5 L. Schirrmeister E. Dietze H. Matthes G. Grosse J. Strauss S. Laboor M. Ulrich F. Kienast S. Wetterich The genesis of Yedoma Ice Complex permafrost – grain-size endmember modeling analysis from Siberia and Alaska |
topic_facet |
Geology QE1-996.5 |
description |
The late Pleistocene Yedoma Ice Complex is an ice-rich and organic-bearing type of permafrost deposit widely distributed across Beringia and is assumed to be especially prone to deep degradation with warming temperature, which is a potential tipping point of the climate system. To better understand Yedoma formation, its local characteristics, and its regional sedimentological composition, we compiled the grain-size distributions (GSDs) of 771 samples from 23 Yedoma locations across the Arctic; samples from sites located close together were pooled to form 17 study sites. In addition, we studied 160 samples from three non-Yedoma ice-wedge polygon and floodplain sites for the comparison of Yedoma samples with Holocene depositional environments. The multimodal GSDs indicate that a variety of sediment production, transport, and depositional processes were involved in Yedoma formation. To disentangle these processes, a robust endmember modeling analysis (rEMMA) was performed. Nine robust grain-size endmembers (rEMs) characterize Yedoma deposits across Beringia. The study sites of Yedoma deposits were finally classified using cluster analysis. The resulting four clusters consisted of two to five sites that are distributed randomly across northeastern Siberia and Alaska, suggesting that the differences are associated with rather local conditions. In contrast to prior studies suggesting a largely aeolian contribution to Yedoma sedimentation, the wide range of rEMs indicates that aeolian sedimentation processes cannot explain the entire variability found in GSDs of Yedoma deposits. Instead, Yedoma sedimentation is controlled by local conditions such as source rocks and weathering processes, nearby paleotopography, and diverse sediment transport processes. Our findings support the hypothesis of a polygenetic Yedoma origin involving alluvial, fluvial, and niveo-aeolian transport; accumulation in ponding waters; and in situ frost weathering as well as postdepositional processes of solifluction, cryoturbation, and ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
L. Schirrmeister E. Dietze H. Matthes G. Grosse J. Strauss S. Laboor M. Ulrich F. Kienast S. Wetterich |
author_facet |
L. Schirrmeister E. Dietze H. Matthes G. Grosse J. Strauss S. Laboor M. Ulrich F. Kienast S. Wetterich |
author_sort |
L. Schirrmeister |
title |
The genesis of Yedoma Ice Complex permafrost – grain-size endmember modeling analysis from Siberia and Alaska |
title_short |
The genesis of Yedoma Ice Complex permafrost – grain-size endmember modeling analysis from Siberia and Alaska |
title_full |
The genesis of Yedoma Ice Complex permafrost – grain-size endmember modeling analysis from Siberia and Alaska |
title_fullStr |
The genesis of Yedoma Ice Complex permafrost – grain-size endmember modeling analysis from Siberia and Alaska |
title_full_unstemmed |
The genesis of Yedoma Ice Complex permafrost – grain-size endmember modeling analysis from Siberia and Alaska |
title_sort |
genesis of yedoma ice complex permafrost – grain-size endmember modeling analysis from siberia and alaska |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-69-33-2020 https://doaj.org/article/9b17bb28ac4e4a89ad8c2a2595f16cc1 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(13.910,13.910,66.011,66.011) |
geographic |
Arctic Remma |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Remma |
genre |
Arctic Ice permafrost wedge* Alaska Beringia Siberia |
genre_facet |
Arctic Ice permafrost wedge* Alaska Beringia Siberia |
op_source |
Eiszeitalter und Gegenwart, Vol 69, Pp 33-53 (2020) |
op_relation |
https://www.eg-quaternary-sci-j.net/69/33/2020/egqsj-69-33-2020.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/0424-7116 https://doaj.org/toc/2199-9090 doi:10.5194/egqsj-69-33-2020 0424-7116 2199-9090 https://doaj.org/article/9b17bb28ac4e4a89ad8c2a2595f16cc1 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-69-33-2020 |
container_title |
E&G Quaternary Science Journal |
container_volume |
69 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
33 |
op_container_end_page |
53 |
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1766343084631654400 |