Holocene climate change in the Hunshandake Sandy Land, Northeast China

• Published in: Palaeogeography, palaeoclimatology, palaeoecology Vol. 643; p. 112182
• Main Authors: Chen, Dongxue, Lu, Ruijie, Ma, Luo, Ding, Zhiyong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 01.06.2024
• Subjects: Aeolian; China; climate; climate change; Climatic change; color; dust storms; East Asian monsoon; evolution; Holocene; Holocene epoch; humidity; Hunshandake Sandy Land; ice; lakes; luminescence; magnetic susceptibility; monsoon season; palaeogeography; paleoclimatology; paleoecology; paleosolic soil types; rivers; runoff; sand; snowmelt; solar radiation; summer; vegetation; China; Aeolian; East Asian monsoon; Hunshandake Sandy Land; Climatic change; Holocene
• ISSN: 0031-0182; 1872-616X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2024.112182

The Hunshandake Sandy Land in the northern part of China is the northern sand barrier of China's key ecological functional zone. The climate change in the Holocene in this area provides a scientific basis for controlling the sandstorm sources affecting Beijing and Tianjin. Currently, there is no consensus on the changes in humidity that occurred during the early Holocene. Based on optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and AMS 14C dating of two aeolian sections, combined with magnetic susceptibility, grain size, colour parameters and geochemical element climatic proxies, we reconstructed Holocene climatic changes in the Hunshandake Sandy Land. Optimum climatic conditions occurred during 8.4–4.2 ka, when the monsoon precipitation was the strongest. After ∼4.2 ka, the climate was dominantly semi-humid to arid. By reviewing the aeolian and lake records from the other Hunshandake Sandy Land records, we suggest that the early Holocene was characterized by shallow lakes or rivers in low-lying areas, suggesting increased snowmelt driven by high solar radiation and increased surface runoff where surface vegetation is sparse. We observed a sudden shift in the layers from river/lake sands to palaeosols, along with abrupt changes in multiple indicators, corresponding to sedimentation linked to the 8.2 ka and 4.2 ka events. By comparing the East Asian summer monsoon precipitation, Northern Hemisphere summer insolation, and ice volume area, we suggest that the evolution of the Holocene East Asian monsoon was influenced by a combination of changes in the Northern Hemisphere ice sheet and solar radiation, which drove climate change in the Hunshandake Sandy Land. •Two aeolian sections in Hunshandake reveal an optimum climate during 8.4–4.2 ka.•The early Holocene was characterized by shallow lakes or rivers in low-lying areas.•The observable lithologies and indicators changed abruptly at the 8.2 ka and 4.2 ka climate events.