Hostname: page-component-848d4c4894-2xdlg Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-06-19T10:29:01.308Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Topographic and climatic influences on accelerated loess accumulation since the last glacial maximum in the Palouse, Pacific Northwest, USA

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 January 2017

Mark R. Sweeney ,
Alan J. Busacca  and
David R. Gaylord
Mark R. Sweeney*
Affiliation:
Department of Geology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2812, USA
Alan J. Busacca
Affiliation:
Department of Geology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2812, USA Department of Crop and Soil Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-6420, USA
David R. Gaylord
Affiliation:
Department of Geology, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-2812, USA
*
⁎Corresponding author. Desert Research Institute, 2215 Raggio Parkway, Reno, NV 89512-1095, USA.E-mail address:mark.sweeney@dri.edu (M.R. Sweeney).
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Topographic and climatic influences have controlled thick loess accumulation at the southern margin of the Palouse loess in northern Oregon. Juniper and Cold Springs Canyons, located on the upwind flank of the Horse Heaven Hills, are oriented perpendicular to prevailing southwesterly winds. These canyons are topographic traps that separate eolian sand on the upwind side from thick accumulations (nearly 8 m) of latest Pleistocene to Holocene L1 loess on the downwind side. Silt- and sand-rich glacial outburst flood sediment in the Umatilla Basin is the source of eolian sand and loess for the region. Sediment from this basin also contributes to loess accumulations across much of the Columbia Plateau to the northeast. Downwind of Cold Springs Canyon, Mt. St. Helens set S and Glacier Peak tephras bracket 4 m of loess, demonstrating that approximately 2500 g m−2 yr−1 of loess accumulated between about 15,400–13,100 cal yr B.P. Mass accumulation rates decreased to approximately 250 g m−2 yr−1 from 13,100 cal yr B.P. to the present. Tephrochronology suggests that the bulk of near-source Palouse loess accumulated in one punctuated interval in the latest Pleistocene characterized by a dry and windy climate.

Keywords

LoessPacific NorthwestTopographic trapPaleoclimateMass accumulation rate
Type
Research Article
Information
Quaternary Research , Volume 63 , Issue 3 , May 2005 , pp. 261 - 273
Copyright
University of Washington

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Antoine, P., Rousseau, D.-D., Zoller, L., Lang, A., Munaut, A.-V., Hatte, C., Fontugne, M., (2001). High-resolution record of the last interglacial-glacial cycle in the Nussloch loess-palaeosol sequences, Upper Rhine area, Germany. Quaternary International 76/77, 211–229.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bagnold, R.A., (1941). The physics of blown sand and desert dunes. Methuen, London., 241 pp.Google Scholar
Bartlein, P.J., Anderson, K.H., Anderson, P.M., Edwards, M.E., Mock, C.J., Thompson, R.S., Webb, R.S., Webb, T. III, Whitlock, C., (1998). Paleoclimate simulations for North America over the past 21,000 years: features of the simulated climate and comparisons with paleoenvironmental data. Quaternary Science Reviews 17, 549–585.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Benito, G., O'Connor, J.E., (2003). Number and size of last-glacial Missoula floods in the Columbia River valley between the Pasco Basin, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. Geological Society of America Bulletin 115, 624–638.2.0.CO;2>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bettis, E.A. III, Muhs, D.R., Roberts, H.M., Wintle, A.G., (2003). Last glacial loess in the conterminous USA. Quaternary Science Reviews 22, 1907–1946.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bjornstad, B.N., Fecht, K.R., Pluhar, C.J., (2001). Long history of pre-Wisconsin, ice age cataclysmic floods: evidence from southeastern Washington state. Journal of Geology 109, 695–713.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blinnikov, M., Busacca, A., Whitlock, C., (2002). Reconstruction of the late Pleistocene grassland of the Columbia basin, Washington, USA, based on phytolith records in loess. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 177, 77–101.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Borchardt, G.A., Aruscavage, P.J., Millard, H.T. Jr., (1972). Correlation of the Bishop ash, a Pleistocene marker bed, using instrumental neutron activation analysis. Journal of Sedimentary Petrology 42, 301–306.Google Scholar
A.J., Busacca (1991). Loess deposits and soils of the Palouse and vicinity.In: V.R., Baker(Ed.),Quaternary Geology of the Columbia Plateau.In: R.B., Morrison(Ed.),Quaternary Non-glacial Geology,Conterminous United States, vol. K-2. The Geology of North America, Geological Society of America, Boulder, pp. 216–228.Google Scholar
Busacca, A.J., McDonald, E.V., (1994). Regional sedimentation of late Quaternary loess on the Columbia Plateau: sediment source areas and loess distribution patterns. Bulletin-Washington. Division of Geology and Earth Resources 80, 181–190.Google Scholar
Busacca, A.J., Nelstead, K.T., McDonald, E.V., Purser, M.D., (1992). Correlation of distal tephra layers in loess in the Channeled Scabland and Palouse of Washington state. Quaternary Research 37, 281–303.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clague, J.J., Barendregt, R., Enkin, R.J., Foit, F.F. Jr., (2003). Paleomagnetic and tephra evidence for tens of Missoula floods in southern Washington. Geology 31, 247–250.2.0.CO;2>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Foit, F.F. Jr., Mehringer, P.J. Jr., Sheppard, J.C., (1993). Age, distribution, and stratigraphy of Glacier Peak tephra in eastern Washington and western Montana, United States. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 30, 535–552.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frazee, C.J., Fehrenbacher, J.B., Krumbein, W.C., (1970). Loess distribution from a source. Proceedings-Soil Science Society of America 34, 296–301.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gaylord, D.R., Foit, F.F. Jr., Schatz, J.K., Coleman, A.J., (2001). Smith Canyon dune field, Washington, U.S.A.: relation to glacial outburst floods, the Mazama eruption, and Holocene paleoclimate. Journal of Arid Environments 47, 403–424.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gregg, T.S., (1964). Distribution of extreme winds in the Bonneville Power Administration service area. United States Department of Interior report. 18 pp.Google Scholar
Johnson, D.R., Makinson, A.J., (1988). Soil survey of Umatilla county area, Oregon. Soil Conservation Service. United States Department of Agriculture, 388 pp.Google Scholar
Kemp, R., (2001). Pedogenic modification of loess: significance for palaeoclimatic reconstructions. Earth-Science Reviews 54, 145–156.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kemp, R.A., Derbyshire, E., Xingmin, M., Fahu, C., Baotian, P., (1995). Pedosedimentary reconstruction of a thick loess-paleosol sequence near Lanzhou in north-central China. Quaternary Research 43, 30–45.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kemp, R.A., McDaniel, P.A., Busacca, A.J., (1998). Genesis and relationship of macromorphology and micromorphology to contemporary hydrological conditions of a welded Argixeroll from the Palouse in Idaho. Geoderma 83, 309–329.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mason, J.A., (2001). Transport direction of Peoria Loess in Nebraska and implications for loess sources on the central Great Plains. Quaternary Research 56, 79–86.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mason, J.A., Nater, E.A., Zanner, C.W., Bell, J.C., (1999). A new model of topographic effects in the distribution of loess. Geomorphology 28, 223–236.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McDonald, E.V., Busacca, A.J., (1990). Interaction between aggrading geomorphic surfaces and the formation of a late Pleistocene paleosol in the Palouse loess of eastern Washington state. Geomorphology 3, 449–470.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McDonald, E.V., Busacca, A.J., (1992). Late Quaternary stratigraphy of loess in the Channeled Scabland and Palouse regions of Washington state. Quaternary Research 38, 141–156.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
E.V., McDonald, A.J., Busacca, (1998). Unusual timing of regional loess sedimentation triggered by glacial outburst flooding in the Pacific Northwest, U.S.In: A.J., Busacca (Ed.), Dust, Aerosols, Loess Soils and Global Change.Economics, Miscellaneous Publication No. MISC0190, , Pullman, WA., pp. 163–166.Google Scholar
Muhs, D.R., Bettis, E.A. III, (2003). Quaternary loess-paleosol sequences as examples of climate-driven sedimentary extremes. Special Paper-Geological Society of America 370, 53–74.Google Scholar
Mullineaux, D.R., (1986). Summary of pre-1980 tephra-fall deposits from Mount St. Helens, Washington state, USA. Bulletin of Volcanology 48, 17–26.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
O'Connor, J.E., Baker, V.R., (1992). Magnitudes and implications of peak discharges from glacial Lake Missoula. Geological Society of America Bulletin 104, 267–279.2.3.CO;2>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
J.E., O'Connor, R.B., Waitt, (1995). Beyond the Channeled Scabland. Oregon Geology 57. 51–60.; 99–115.Google Scholar
O'Geen, A.T., Busacca, A.J., (2001). Faunal burrows as indicators of paleo-vegetation in eastern Washington, USA. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 169, 23–37.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Porter, S.C., An, Z., (1995). Correlation between climate events in the North Atlantic and China during the last glaciation. Nature 375, 305–308.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pye, K., (1995). The nature, origin and accumulation of loess. Quaternary Science Reviews 14, 653–667.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Richardson, C.A., McDonald, E.V., Busacca, A.J., (1997). Luminescence dating of loess from the northwest United States. Quaternary Science Reviews 16, 403–415.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Roberts, H.M., Muhs, D.R., Wintle, A.G., Duller, G.A.T., Bettis, E.A. III, (2003). Unprecedented last-glacial mass accumulation rates determined by luminescence dating of loess from Western Nebraska. Quaternary Research 59, 411–419.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shao, Y., Raupach, M.R., Findlater, P.A., (1993). Effect of saltation bombardment on the entrainment of dust by wind. Journal of Geophysical Research 98, D7 12719–12726.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stuiver, M., Reimer, P.J., (1993). Extended 14C database and revised CALIB radiocarbon calibration program. Radiocarbon 35, 215–230.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stuiver, M., Reimer, P.J., Bard, E., Beck, J.W., Burr, G.S., Hughen, K.A., Kromer, B., McCormac, F.G., v.d. Plicht, J., Spurk, M., (1998). INTCAL98 Radiocarbon age calibration 24,000–0 cal BP. Radiocarbon 40, 1041–1083.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
M.R., Sweeney, (2004). Sedimentology, paleoclimatology, and geomorphology of a late Pleistocene–Holocene paired eolian system, Columbia Plateau.Unpublished PhD Dissertation,Washington State University, , Pullman., 204 pp.Google Scholar
M.R., Sweeney, A.J., Busacca, D.R., Gaylord, Zender, C., (2002). Provenance of Palouse loess related to late Quaternary glacial outburst flooding in the Pacific Northwest [abs.].Eos Transactions AGU 83, H22B-0899.Google Scholar
Sweeney, M.R., Busacca, A.J., Richardson, C.A., Blinnikov, M.S., McDonald, E.V., (2004). Glacial anticyclone recorded in Palouse loess of northwestern USA. Geology 32, 705–708.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
T.A., Tate, (1998). Micromorphology of loessial soils and paleosols on aggrading landscapes on the Columbia Plateau.Unpublished MS Thesis,Washington State University, , Pullman., 192 pp.Google Scholar
Vandenberghe, J., Nugteren, G., (2001). Rapid climatic changes recorded in loess successions. Global and Planetary Change 28, 1–9.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Waitt, R.B. Jr., (1985). Case of periodic, colossal jokulhlaups from Pleistocene glacial Lake Missoula. Geological Society of America Bulletin 96, 1271–1286.2.0.CO;2>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whitlock, C., Bartlein, P.J., (1997). Vegetation and climate change in northwest America during the past 125 kyr. Nature 388, 57–61.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Whitlock, C., Grigg, L.D., (1999). Paleoecological evidence of Milankovitch and sub-Milankovitch climate variations in the western U.S. during the late Quaternary. Clark, P.U., Webb, R.S., Keigwin, L.D., Mechanisms of global climate change: Washington, DC, American Geophysical Union Monograph vol. 112, 227–241.Google Scholar
Whitlock, C., Sarna-Wojcicki, A.M., Bartlein, P.J., Nickmann, R.J., (2000). Environmental history and tephrostratigraphy at Carp Lake, southwestern Columbia Basin, Washington, USA. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 155, 7–29.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zdanowicz, C.M., Zielinski, G.A., Germani, M.S., (1999). Mount Mazama eruption: calendrical age verified and atmospheric impact assessed. Geology 27, 621–624.2.3.CO;2>CrossRefGoogle Scholar