DOI: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2016.09.020
论文题名: The Menengai Tuff: A 36 ka widespread tephra and its chronological relevance to Late Pleistocene human evolution in East Africa
作者: Blegen N. ; Brown F.H. ; Jicha B.R. ; Binetti K.M. ; Faith J.T. ; Ferraro J.V. ; Gathogo P.N. ; Richardson J.L. ; Tryon C.A.
刊名: Quaternary Science Reviews
出版年: 2016
卷: 152 起始页码: 152
结束页码: 168
语种: 英语
英文关键词: East Africa
; Geochronology
; Human evolution
; Late Pleistocene
; Tephrostratigraphy
Scopus关键词: Climate change
; Concrete aggregates
; Electron probe microanalysis
; Geochronology
; Geology
; Volcanoes
; Caldera-forming eruption
; Early pleistocene
; East Africa
; Geochemical characterization
; Human evolution
; Late Pleistocene
; Tephrostratigraphy
; Wavelength-dispersive electron-probe microanalysis
; Biodiversity
; archaeological evidence
; caldera
; climate variation
; geological record
; human evolution
; paleoenvironment
; Pliocene-Pleistocene boundary
; stratigraphy
; tephra
; tephrochronology
; tuff
; volcanic ash
; volcanic eruption
; East African Rift
; Kenya
; Homo sapiens
英文摘要: The East African Rift preserves the world's richest Middle and Late Pleistocene (∼780–12 ka) geological, archaeological and paleontological archives relevant to the emergence of Homo sapiens. This region also provides unparalleled chronological control for many important sites through tephrochronology, the dating and correlation of volcanic ashes as widespread isochronous markers in the geological record. There are many well-characterized Pliocene-Early Pleistocene tephras that are widespread across East Africa. A comparable framework is lacking for the Middle and Late Pleistocene; a period characterized by spatially and temporally complex patterns of climate change, as well as the emergence of modern Homo sapiens and the dispersal of this species across and out of Africa. Unraveling relationships among these spatial and temporally complex phenomena requires a precise chronology. To this end we report the Menengai Tuff, a widespread volcanic ash produced by the large-scale caldera-forming eruption in Kenya and 40Ar/39Ar dated to 35.62 ± 0.26 ka. Geochemical characterization of 565 glass shards from 36 samples by wavelength-dispersive electron probe microanalysis show the Menengai Tuff was deposited over >115,000 km2 and is found in the Baringo, Chalbi, Elmenteita, Nakuru, Olorgesailie, Turkana, and Victoria basins, all of which preserve rich Late Pleistocene paleoenvironmental and archaeological archives. Correlation and dating of the Menengai Tuff demonstrate that it is the most widespread tephra and largest eruption currently known from the Late Pleistocene of East Africa. As such, it is a valuable marker in establishing a Late Pleistocene chronology for paleoclimatic, archeological, and paleontological records relevant to the study of human evolution. © 2016 资助项目: Blegen, N.
; Department of Anthropology, Harvard University Peabody Museum, 11 Divinity Ave, United States
; 电子邮件: nick_blegen@fas.harvard.edu
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资源类型: 期刊论文
标识符: http://119.78.100.158/handle/2HF3EXSE/59406
Appears in Collections: 过去全球变化的重建
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作者单位: Department of Anthropology, Harvard University Peabody Museum, 11 Divinity Ave, Cambridge, MA, United States; Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Utah, 115 S 1460 E, Rm. 383, Salt Lake City, UT, United States; Department of Geoscience, University of Wisconsin–Madison, 1215 W. Dayton St., Madison, WI, United States; Department of Anthropology, Institute of Archaeology, Baylor University, 1214 S. 4th Street, MMSCI 260, Waco, TX, United States; School of Social Science, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia; Department of Biology, Franklin & Marshall College, Lancaster, PA, United States
Recommended Citation:
Blegen N.,Brown F.H.,Jicha B.R.,et al. The Menengai Tuff: A 36 ka widespread tephra and its chronological relevance to Late Pleistocene human evolution in East Africa[J]. Quaternary Science Reviews,2016-01-01,152