We compared accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) 14C ages of large (>150 μm) pelagic foraminifera with radiometric bulk carbonate 14C ages in two northeastern Atlantic cores. The foraminiferal ages are consistently older than those of the bulk sediment (by + 0.76 ka in Core 11881 and by + 1.1 ka in Core 11886), whereas corresponding fine (<5 μm) fraction ages are similar to those of the bulk sediment carbonate. We calculated near-identical sediment accumulation rates from both the foraminiferal and bulk sediment age/depth relations (3.0 cm ka−1 in Core 11881 and 5.9 cm ka−1 in Core 11886). Consideration of various factors that might produce such offsets leads us to believe that they are not artifacts, but were most probably caused by differential bioturbation of the different size-fractions in the sediment surface mixed layer. The importance of this finding is that many paleoceanographic records, such as the oxygen isotope record, also derive from analyses of large foraminifera, so that these records must be offset in time from the bulk of the sediments that they characterize.

We report preliminary results of a long-term systematic study intended to gather paleoclimatic records from precisely dated speleothems. The research project is limited to speleothems deposited in caves of the Cracow-Wieluń Upland, the largest and best-explored karst region in Poland, covering ca. 2900 km2 with >1000 caves. Speleothem samples were selected from collections of the Geological Museum of the Academy of Mining and Metallurgy in Cracow. Radiocarbon dates of these samples from ca. 45–20 ka bp almost exactly coincide with age range of the Interplenivistulian. A break in speleothem formation between ca. 20 and 10 ka bp may be interpreted as a result of serious climatic deterioration associated with the maximum extent of the last glaciation. We observed differences among 14C, U/Th and AAR dating results. Changes of δ13C and δ18O in speleothems that grew between ca. 30 and 20 ka bp may be interpreted as changes of paleoclimatic conditions.

Paleokarst forms in raised beach deposits of Southwest England and South Wales and generally known as “pipes” were dated by 14C and thermoluminescence (TL) methods. Current geological opinion is that these pipes are features that developed under the cover of periglacial-solifluctional deposits due to periglacial conditions prevalent in the Late Devensian. In the present study, TL was used to determine the age of quartz grains forming the raised beaches. 14C ages were obtained from carbonate cements within sandrock and on the pipe walls. TL ages measured for quartz grains separated from sandrock samples are older than 80 ka bp, whereas the corresponding TL dates obtained from the sandy material of pipe infills center around 40 ka bp. All carbonates yielded finite apparent 14C dates that range from ca. 45 ka bp to 27 ka bp for sandrock. The apparent 14C dates obtained on carbonate cements from the pipe walls fall into two groups, one ranging from 30 ka bp to 22 ka bp and the other from 15 ka bp to 7 ka bp. On the basis of geochemical considerations, we conclude that the sandrock cements formed between 35 and 25 ka bp and pipe walls cemented between 30 and 2 ka bp with a break during the climate deterioration caused by last ice sheet advance.

We report on 69 radiocarbon dates of mollusk shells and benthic foraminifera from the upper 132 m of the marine shelf sediments of the Skagen Core (220 m total length). The dated sequence covers the Late Glacial and the Holocene (from 15 ka bp to Recent). Sedimentation rates range from 1 to 70 m ka−1. The macrofossil shell dates follow a smooth curve constituting an age model for dating the sediments. The foraminiferal dates fall into two groups: those that agree exactly with the mollusk shells and those that deviate substantially, always being older than the shells by as much as 5 ka. One mixed foraminiferal sample consisted of members from both groups, and as a result, the age deviation of the sample turned out to be some weighted average. The data indicate that the age deviations are due to admixtures of reworked older foraminifera.

We studied the structure and development of the Holocene floodplain of the Labe (Elbe) River by radiocarbon dating sections of the upper and middle courses of the river. We focused on geomorphological and sedimentological conditions, mineralogy and the chemical composition of sediments. We established the stratigraphy of the Holocene deposits of the floodplain. The results of our investigation of fluvial sediments imply that several abrupt changes in temperature and precipitation occurred during the Holocene. These changes led to intervals of hydrological disequilibrium, which caused the formation of two Holocene terraces and a contemporaneous floodplain. The lower terrace was flooded and covered with sediments upon which the recent floodplain formed. During the Holocene, there were four periods during which large tree trunks were deposited in the fluvial sediments, indicating periods of extensive flooding. The supposition that these events were of more global scale is supported by the results of investigations made on the Holocene floodplains of other regions.

Recent fieldwork on the island of Faial (Azores) led to the establishment of a detailed volcanic stratigraphic sequence, which is composed of five main geological formations. One of them, the Caldeira Formation, comprising mainly pumice fall and flow deposits, was judged to be Holocene in age. Organic materials were found preserved in or below some of the pyroclastic deposits from this formation. Wood, charcoal, peat and soil samples were radiocarbon dated, permitting correlation of deposits from different sequences and the establishment of a chronological framework for the Caldeira volcanic activity. These materials yielded ages from ca. 10–1 ka bp. The average dormant interval in the Caldeira pyroclastic activity from 4–1 ka ago is ca. 400 yr, with eruptions approximately every 200–800 yr. This frequency of activity indicates that the Caldeira volcano is an active, dangerous structure that should be closely monitored.

The Laacher Sec Tephra (LST) layer provides a unique and invaluable time marker in European sediments with increasing importance because it occurs just before the onset of the Younger Dryas (YD) cold event. As the YD begins ca. 200 calendar years after the LST was deposited, accurate determination of the radiocarbon age of this ash layer will lead to a more accurate age assignment for the beginning of the YD. On the basis of 12 terrestrial plant macrofossil 14C ages derived from sediments from Soppensee, Holzmaar and Schlakenmehrener Maar, we found an age of at least 11,230 ± 40 bp for the LST event. This is ca. 200 yr older than the often reported age of 11,000 ± 50 bp (van den Bogaard and Schmincke 1985).

Tree rings from a section of Prumnopitys taxifolia (matai) covering the period ad 1335–1745 have been radiocarbon dated and used to generate a 14C calibration curve for southern hemisphere wood. Comparison of this curve with calibration data for northern hemisphere wood does not show a systematic difference between 14C ages measured in the northern and southern hemispheres. A floating chronology covering 270 yr and terminating at the last Taupo (New Zealand) eruption, derived from a sequence of 10-yr samples of tree rings from Phyllocladus trichomanoides (celery pine, or tanekaha), is also consistent with the absence of a systematic north-south difference, and together with the matai data, fixes the date of the Taupo eruption at ad 232 ± 15.

We use a dry extraction method to obtain trapped CO2 of shallow ice cores from a blue ice area of East Antarctica. In-situ-produced 14C extracted in 14CO2 and 14CO concentrations show a mean ratio of 3.4 ± 0.4. Correction for in-situ14CO2 resulted in ice ages within 7–13 ka. The accumulation and ablation rates determined from the in-situ production of 7–20 cm yr−1 and 10–13 cm yr−1, respectively, agree with field measurements, and thus indicate close to total efficiency of extraction.

Radiocarbon dating is an important tool for reconstructing Late Quaternary paleoenvironmental history of the Antarctic continent. Because of the scarcity of datable material, new suitable substances are welcomed. We present here novel paleoenvironmental records—subfossil stomach oil deposits (mumiyo). This waxy organic material is found in petrel breeding colonies, especially in those of snow petrels, Pagodroma nivea. The substance is formed by accumulation and solidification of stomach oil regurgitated for the purpose of defense. We demonstrate and outline the usefulness and limitations of 14C dating mumiyo for determining dates of local ice retreat, moraines and petrel occupation history.

We examine the pollen analytical and 14C sequences from two Sumatra highland sites, Pea Bullok (2°15'N, 99°02'E) and Danau di-Atas (1°04'S, 100°46'E). The pollen diagrams do not correlate particularly well, possibly because two of the samples from Danau di-Atas analyzed by radioactive decay counting earlier should be infinite. Other complications are differences in the type of site, local topography, pollen sums used and difficulty in distinguishing between pollen taxa from local and regional vegetation. The older material from Pea Bullok was AMS dated.

Sedimentological, mineral magnetic and carbon isotopic studies on cores from Mansar Lake in the Jammu area provide paleomonsoonal history dating back to 580 bc. From ca. 580 bc to ad 300, the region experienced precipitation similar to the present, whereas from ad 300 to 1400, the monsoon was relatively subdued. A small excursion ca. ad 1100 suggests an effect of medieval warming. Studies in the Kumaon region did not provide a proper precipitation record, as anthropogenic activity interfered with sedimentation. Manasbal Lake in Kashmir gave an inversion of 14C chronology due to younger paleosols in the drainage basin. Further, the episodic nature of sedimentation in Manasbal Lake hampered the reconstruction of precipitation history in the area.

The cause of the mid-Holocene elm decline in northwestern Europe and its relation to the contemporaneous transition from Mesolithic to Neolithic economy are still unclear, partly owing to the lack of a precise, calibrated chronology. Matching of a sequence of 14C dates to the calibration curve in combination with accurate 14C dating allows high-precision dating of paleoecological events. We have completed high-resolution dating of a Sphagnum-peat sequence from Ageröds Mosse in southernmost Sweden. The basis for selecting 14C samples was pollen analysis at 1 cm intervals. Nine 14C dates, covering an interval of ca. 500 calendar years around the elm decline, showed that this event occurred in Ageröds Mosse within a few decades ca. 3770 bc.

The Israelite site of Kuntillet Ajrud in northern Sinai contains unique drawings and inscriptions in ancient Hebrew and Phoenician. It is a single-phase site dated archaeologically to ca. 800 bce. We considered this site a good test case for comparing archaeological with 14C datings. The dates are in agreement, confirming that 14C dating is useful in dating Iron-Age II sites.

Samples from Tell es-Sultan, Jericho, were selected for high-precision 14C dating as a contribution toward the establishment of an independent radiocarbon chronology of Near Eastern archaeology. The material derives from archaeological excavations conducted by K. M. Kenyon in the 1950s. We present here the results of 18 samples, associated stratigraphically with the end of the Middle Bronze Age (MBA) at Tell es-Sultan. Six short-lived samples consist of charred cereal grains and 12 multiyear samples are composed of charcoal. The weighted average 14C date of the short-lived grains is 3306 ± 7 bp. The multiyear charcoal yielded, as expected, a somewhat older average: 3370 ± 6 bp. Both dates are more precise than the standard deviation (a) of the calibration curves and the absolute standard of oxalic acid. Calibration of the above Jericho dates is a bit premature, because several groups are currently testing the accuracy of both the 1986 and 1993 calibration curves. Nevertheless, preliminary calibration results are presented for comparison, based on 4 different calibration curves and 3 different computer programs. Wiggles in the calibration curves translate the precise bp dates into rather wide ranges in historical years. The final destruction of MBA Jericho occurred during the late 17th or the 16th century bc. More definite statements about the calibrated ages cannot be made until the accuracy of available calibration curves has been tested. Development of calibration curves for the Eastern Mediterranean region would be important.