Late Mississippian (Chesterian) high-frequency climate change in the Pennington Formation at Pound Gap, KY USA.

dc.contributor.advisorDriese, Steven G.
dc.contributor.authorKahmann-Robinson, Julia A.
dc.contributor.departmentGeology.en
dc.contributor.otherBaylor University. Dept. of Geology.en
dc.date.accessioned2009-04-01T19:15:49Z
dc.date.available2009-04-01T19:15:49Z
dc.date.copyright2008-12
dc.date.issued2008-03
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical references (p. 118-134).en
dc.description.abstractClimate during the Late Mississippian (Late Chesterian) in the southern Appalachian Basin was characterized by periods of aridity and humidity. The Pennington Formation, exposed at Pound Gap, KY, USA records these changing climatic conditions. The climate signal, however, is partially obscured by longer-term eustatic fluctuations throughout the Late Chesterian. In this clastic-dominated formation, evidence for several orders of cyclicity point to tectonic, glacio-eustatic, and climate controlled-cyclicity. Pennington Formation paleosols provide a record of climate and ecological changes for latest Chesterian time. Forty paleosols were identified, described, and assigned to seven pedotypes ranging from Vertisols to Oxisols. Field and micromorphological evidence suggests a polygenetic character of the Vertisols, resulting from changing soil drainage through time. Using the CIA-K proxy, mean annual precipitation (MAP) estimates range from 519 to 1361 mm/yr. Variations in MAP and quantified soil processes correspond with variation s in soil drainage, resulting from high-frequency paleoclimate change. The temporal distribution of trace elements in paleosols is also related to soil-forming processes and climate. The trace element chemistry (Ti, Ga, Ge, Y, Zr, Nb, Cs, La, Hf, Ta, W, Ce, Th) of the paleosols is controlled by either organic matter content or lessivage (clay formation and accumulation by feldspar weathering). Climate changes are inferred from the trace element chemistry, which is related to changing MAP and intensity of chemical weathering. This study provides greater resolution of changing climate, controls on sedimentation, and pedogenic processes than what is provided in previous studies of the Late Mississippian. The documented variability in fluvial cyclicity, paleosol types, soil drainage, and trace element chemistry might represent the record of high-frequency climate changes likely associated with expansion and contraction of the paleo-Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ).en
dc.description.degreePh.D.en
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityby Julia Amanda Kahmann-Robinson.en
dc.format.extentix, 134 p. : ill., maps.en
dc.format.extent6040934 bytes
dc.format.extent138439 bytes
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdf
dc.identifier.citationKahmann, Julia A. and Steven G. Driese. "Paleopedology and geochemistry of Late Mississippian (Chesterian) Pennington Formation paleosols at Pound Gap, Kentucky, USA: Implications for high-frequency climate variations." Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 259, issue 4 (2008): 357-381.en
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2104/5293
dc.language.isoen_USen
dc.rightsBaylor University theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. Contact librarywebmaster@baylor.edu for inquiries about permission.en
dc.rights.accessrightsWorldwide access.en
dc.rights.accessrightsAccess changed 9-11-09.
dc.subjectPennington Formation.en
dc.subjectPaleopedology --- Kentucky --- Pound Gap.en
dc.subjectPaleoclimatology --- Kentucky --- Pound Gap.en
dc.subjectGeology, Stratigraphic -- Mississippian.en
dc.titleLate Mississippian (Chesterian) high-frequency climate change in the Pennington Formation at Pound Gap, KY USA.en
dc.typeThesisen

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