Paleoclimatic Inferences from a 120,000-Yr Calcite Record of Water-Table Fluctuation in Browns Room of Devils Hole, Nevada

1994 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barney J. Szabo ◽  
Peter T. Kolesar ◽  
Alan C. Riggs ◽  
Issac J. Winograd ◽  
Kenneth R. Ludwig
Keyword(s):  
Great Basin ◽  
Water Table ◽  
Flow System ◽  
Present Level ◽  
Water Table Fluctuation ◽  
The Past ◽  
Southern Nevada ◽  
Uranium Series Dating ◽  
Devils Hole ◽  
Ash Meadows

AbstractThe petrographic and morphologic differences between calcite precipitated below, at, or above the present water table and uranium-series dating were used to reconstruct a chronology of water-table fluctuation for the past 120,000 yr in Browns Room, a subterranean air-filled chamber of Devils Hole fissure adjacent to the discharge area of the large Ash Meadows groundwater flow system in southern Nevada. The water table was more than 5 m above present level between about 116,000 and 53,000 yr ago, fluctuated between about +5 and +9 m during the period between about 44,000 and 20,000 yr ago, and declined rapidly from +9 to its present level during the past 20,000 yr. Because the Ash Meadows groundwater basin is greater than 12,000 km2 in extent, these documented water-table fluctuations are likely to be of regional significance. Although different in detail, water-level fluctuation recorded by Browns Room calcites generally correlate with other Great Basin proxy palcoclimatic data.

A record of mid- and late Holocene paleohydroclimate from Lower Pahranagat Lake, southern Great Basin

2019 ◽  
Vol 92 (2) ◽  
pp. 352-364
Author(s):  
Kevin M. Theissen ◽  
Thomas A. Hickson ◽  
Ashley L. Brundrett ◽  
Sarah E. Horns ◽  
Matthew S. Lachniet
Keyword(s):  
Great Basin ◽  
Late Holocene ◽  
Fine Fraction ◽  
Total Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Dry Period ◽  
The Past ◽  
The North ◽  
Southern Nevada ◽  
Show Evidence ◽  
Hydroclimatic Variability

AbstractWe present a continuous, sediment core-based record of paleohydroclimate spanning ~5800 cal yr BP to recent from Lower Pahranagat Lake (LPAH), a shallow, alkaline lake in southern Nevada. We apply stable isotopes (δ18O and δ13C) from fine-fraction authigenic carbonate, which are sensitive recorders of hydroclimatic variability in this highly evaporative region. Additional geochemical proxies (total organic carbon, C/N, and total inorganic carbon) provide supporting information on paleoecological change in and around the lake. Our data suggest progressively wetter conditions starting at the later part of the middle Holocene and extending into the late Holocene (~5500–3350 cal yr BP) followed by a millennial-scale dry period from ~3150 to 1700 cal yr BP. This latter interval encompasses the ‘Late Holocene dry period’ (LHDP) reported by other investigators, and our data help refine the area affected in this episode. Our data also show evidence for a series of century-scale fluctuations in regional hydroclimate, including wet and dry intervals between 2350 and 1600 cal yr BP, and drier conditions over the past few centuries. Paleohydroclimate trends in the LPAH record show correspondence with those from the central Great Basin to the north, suggesting that both areas were subject to similar climatic forcings.

Duration and Structure of the Past Four Interglaciations

1997 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-154 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isaac J. Winograd ◽  
Jurate M. Landwehr ◽  
Kenneth R. Ludwig ◽  
Tyler B. Coplen ◽  
Alan C. Riggs
Keyword(s):  
Time Series ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Great Basin ◽  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Uranium Series ◽  
The Past ◽  
Climatic Cycles ◽  
Devils Hole

AbstractReanalysis and additional dating of the Devils Hole δ18O paleotemperature record confirm that the last interglaciation in the Great Basin (the continental analog of marine isotopic substage 5e) lasted ∼22,000 yr, consistent with the Vostok paleotemperature record which suggests a duration of ∼19,000 yr for this event in Antarctica. The three preceding interglaciations in the Devils Hole record (analogs of marine isotopic substages 7e, 9c, and 11c) range from 20,000 to 26,000 yr in duration. A ∼20,000-yr duration for the last interglaciation is consistent with TIMS uranium-series dated sea-level high stands. Thus, the widely held view that interglaciations were of 11,000- to 13,000-yr duration and constituted only about 10% of mid-to-late Pleistocene climatic cycles needs reexamination. The warmest portion of each interglaciation in the Devils Hole time series is marked by a δ18O plateau, signifying apparent climatic stability for periods of 10,000- to 15,000-yr duration.

scholarly journals Groundwater recharge estimation in arid hardrock-alluvium aquifers using combined water-table fluctuation and groundwater balance approaches

2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (19) ◽  
pp. 3437-3451 ◽  
Author(s):  
Azizallah Izady ◽  
Osman A.E. Abdalla ◽  
Ata Joodavi ◽  
Akbar Karimi ◽  
Mingjie Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Groundwater Recharge ◽  
Water Table ◽  
Groundwater Balance ◽  
Water Table Fluctuation ◽  
Recharge Estimation

The first record of Cancelloceras (Early Pennsylvanian Ammonoidea) from southern Nevada: Implications for timing of regional mid-Carboniferous sea-level fluctuations

1997 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
pp. 158-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alan L. Titus
Keyword(s):  
Great Basin ◽  
Las Vegas ◽  
First Record ◽  
Field Trip ◽  
Geological Society ◽  
Clark County ◽  
Sea Level Fluctuations ◽  
Southern Nevada ◽  
Carbonate Deposition ◽  
Basin Region

In 1988, the presence of an Early Pennsylvanian ammonoid assemblage within the basal meter of the Callville Formation (Pennsylvanian-Permian), eastern Clark County, Nevada, was brought to the attention of the author by Stephen M. Rowland, University of Nevada-Las Vegas. The ammonoids occur in the Frenchman Mountain section described by Rowland (1987) for the Geological Society of America's Decade of North American Geology (DNAG) field trip compendium. The mid-Carboniferous section at this locality (Figure 1) was discussed in two other field trip guides as well (Langenheim and Webster, 1979; Webster et al., 1984). No ammonoids have been reported previously from this locality. Although this is the first record of Cancelloceras from the Great Basin region, the assemblage also provides a narrowly constrained age for the basal part of the Callville Formation at Frenchman Mountain, which in turn, dates the initiation of carbonate deposition following a major mid-Carboniferous hiatus in the southern Great Basin.

scholarly journals Influence of Water Table Fluctuation on Natural Source Zone Depletion in Hydrocarbon Contaminated Subsurface Environments

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Reem Ismail ◽  
Saeid Shafieiyoun ◽  
Riyadh Al Raoush ◽  
Fereidoun Rezanezhad
Keyword(s):  
Water Table ◽  
Contaminated Soil ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
Source Zone ◽  
Water Table Fluctuation ◽  
Mass Removal ◽  
Water Table Fluctuations ◽  
Water Conditions ◽  
Static Water ◽  
Influence Of Water

Most of the prediction theories regarding dissolution of organic contaminants in the subsurface systems have been proposed based on the static water conditions; and the influence of water fluctuations on mass removal requires further investigations. In this study, it was intended to investigate the effects of water table fluctuations on biogeochemical properties of the contaminated soil at the smear zone between the vadose zone and the groundwater table. An automated 60 cm soil column system was developed and connected to a hydrostatic equilibrium reservoir to impose the water regime by using a multi-channel pump. Four homogenized hydrocarbon contaminated soil columns were constructed and two of them were fully saturated and remained under static water conditions while another two columns were operated under water table fluctuations between the soil surface and 40 cm below it. The experiments were run for 150 days and relevant geochemical indicators as well as dissolved phase concentrations were analyzed at 30 and 50 cm below the soil surface in all columns. The results indicated significant difference in terms of biodegradation effectiveness between the smear zones exposed to static and water table fluctuation conditions. This presentation will provide an overview of the experimental approach, mass removal efficiency, and key findings.

scholarly journals Simulation of real-time variations of saline drainage water: comparing system dynamics with DRAINMOD-S

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hamed Nozari ◽  
Abdolmajid Liaghat ◽  
Saeed Azadi ◽  
Azin Poursadri ◽  
Behzad Ghanbarian
Keyword(s):  
System Dynamics ◽  
Water Table ◽  
Drainage Water ◽  
Computer Simulation Model ◽  
Agricultural Water ◽  
Agricultural Water Management ◽  
Water Table Fluctuation ◽  
Wastewater Quality ◽  
Daily Water ◽  
Time Variations

Abstract Accurate simulations of wastewater quality and quantity, particularly in saline and semi-arid areas, are important in agricultural water management. In this study a system dynamics (SD) approach was proposed to simulate drainage water and groundwater salinities, water table fluctuation, and drainage discharge at field-scale. The results of the SD approach were compared with results from DRAINMOD-S, a computer simulation model. For model validation, earlier experimental data from two field units were used. The field units each contained three rows of piezometers. During irrigation, daily water table fluctuation, drainage discharge, irrigation and drainage water salinity, and the salinity in each piezometer, were measured. The SD approach simulated these parameters more accurately than DRAINMOD-S for both units.

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