Articles | Volume 72, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-72-77-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-72-77-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| 
24 Apr 2023
Research article |
| 24 Apr 2023
| 24 Apr 2023
Pleniglacial dynamics in an oceanic central European loess landscape
Stephan Pötter
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Department of Geography, RWTH Aachen University, 52062 Aachen, Germany
Chair of Geography, University of Koblenz-Landau, 56070 Koblenz, Germany
Katharina Seeger
Institute of Geography, University of Cologne, 50923 Cologne, Germany
Christiane Richter
Institute of Geography, Technical University Dresden, 01069 Dresden, Germany
Dominik Brill
Institute of Geography, University of Cologne, 50923 Cologne, Germany
Mathias Knaak
Division Applied Geosciences, Geological Survey of North Rhine-Westphalia, 47803 Krefeld, Germany
Frank Lehmkuhl
Department of Geography, RWTH Aachen University, 52062 Aachen, Germany
Philipp Schulte
Department of Geography, RWTH Aachen University, 52062 Aachen, Germany
Related authors
Martin Kehl, Katharina Seeger, Stephan Pötter, Philipp Schulte, Nicole Klasen, Mirijam Zickel, Andreas Pastoors, and Erich Claßen
E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 73, 41–67, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-73-41-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-73-41-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
The loess–palaeosol sequence (LPS) at Rheindahlen provides a detailed sedimentary archive of past climate change. Furthermore, it contains Palaeolithic find horizons indicating repeated occupations by Neanderthals. The age of loess layers and the timing of human occupation are a matter of strong scientific debate. We present new data to shed light on formation processes and deposition ages. Previous chronostratigraphic estimates are revised providing a reliable chronostratigraphic framework .
Frank Lehmkuhl, Philipp Schulte, Wolfgang Römer, and Stephan Pötter
E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 72, 203–218, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-72-203-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-72-203-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Research in loess landscapes provides evidence for the paleoenvironmental settings for past human societies and for the paleoclimate evolution of the past. Archeological and geoscientific investigations must consider different relief settings due to erosion, slope wash, accumulation of sediments and relocation of artifacts. The Lower Rhine Embayment can serve as a blueprint for such research as a typical loess landscape of Central Europe.
Johannes Keßels, Anna Swieder, Philipp Schulte, Götz Alper, Christopher Tober, Susanne Friederich, and Frank Lehmkuhl
E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 74, 129–145, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-74-129-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-74-129-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
This paper presents the current state of research on mining history in the Selke River catchment as part of the eastern Harz vein district. We used different archives to compile and localise information about former mines/mining fields and smelting sites. The extraction and operation periods of these sites provide further information on possible signals in the overbank deposits due to mining activity, providing a basis for further analysis and interpretation of alluvial deposits.
Gergino Chounna Yemele, Philip S. J. Minderhoud, Leonard Osadebamwen Ohenhen, Katharina Seeger, Manoochehr Shirzaei, and Pietro Teatini
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-336, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2025-336, 2025
This preprint is open for discussion and under review for Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences (NHESS).
Short summary
Short summary
This study examines coastal land subsidence in Douala, Cameroon, revealing rates between −17.6 and 3.8 mm/year. Subsidence patterns correlate with natural and anthropogenic processes, including land-use changes and urbanisation. Recently urbanised areas show higher subsidence rates than older urban zones. The findings highlight the need for further investigation, ongoing monitoring, and adaptation measures to address this environmental challenge effectively.
Martin Kehl, Katharina Seeger, Stephan Pötter, Philipp Schulte, Nicole Klasen, Mirijam Zickel, Andreas Pastoors, and Erich Claßen
E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 73, 41–67, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-73-41-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-73-41-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
The loess–palaeosol sequence (LPS) at Rheindahlen provides a detailed sedimentary archive of past climate change. Furthermore, it contains Palaeolithic find horizons indicating repeated occupations by Neanderthals. The age of loess layers and the timing of human occupation are a matter of strong scientific debate. We present new data to shed light on formation processes and deposition ages. Previous chronostratigraphic estimates are revised providing a reliable chronostratigraphic framework .
Frank Lehmkuhl, Philipp Schulte, Wolfgang Römer, and Stephan Pötter
E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 72, 203–218, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-72-203-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-72-203-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Research in loess landscapes provides evidence for the paleoenvironmental settings for past human societies and for the paleoclimate evolution of the past. Archeological and geoscientific investigations must consider different relief settings due to erosion, slope wash, accumulation of sediments and relocation of artifacts. The Lower Rhine Embayment can serve as a blueprint for such research as a typical loess landscape of Central Europe.
Mathias Vinnepand, Peter Fischer, Ulrich Hambach, Olaf Jöris, Carol-Ann Craig, Christian Zeeden, Barry Thornton, Thomas Tütken, Charlotte Prud'homme, Philipp Schulte, Olivier Moine, Kathryn E. Fitzsimmons, Christian Laag, Frank Lehmkuhl, Wolfgang Schirmer, and Andreas Vött
E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 72, 163–184, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-72-163-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-72-163-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Loess–palaeosol sequences (LPSs) represent continental and non-aquatic archives providing detailed information on Quaternary environmental and climate changes. We present an integrative approach combining sedimentological, rock magnetic, and bulk geochemical data, as well as information on Sr and Nd isotope composition. The approach adds to a comprehensive understanding of LPS formation including changes in dust composition and associated circulation patterns during Quaternary climate changes.
Katharina Seeger, Philip S. J. Minderhoud, Andreas Peffeköver, Anissa Vogel, Helmut Brückner, Frauke Kraas, Nay Win Oo, and Dominik Brill
Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci., 27, 2257–2281, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-2257-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-27-2257-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
Accurate elevation data is essential for flood risk assessment. We assess land elevation to local mean sea level of the Ayeyarwady Delta with a new, local DEM based on geodetic data and evaluate the performance of 10 global DEMs in an SLR impact assessment. Our study reveals major differences in performance between global DEMs and consequentially introduced uncertainty in SLR impact assessments, indicating potential similar uncertainties for other data-poor coastal lowlands around the world.
Stephanie Scheidt, Matthias Lenz, Ramon Egli, Dominik Brill, Martin Klug, Karl Fabian, Marlene M. Lenz, Raphael Gromig, Janet Rethemeyer, Bernd Wagner, Grigory Federov, and Martin Melles
Geochronology, 4, 87–107, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-4-87-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/gchron-4-87-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Levinson-Lessing Lake in northern central Siberia provides an exceptional opportunity to study the evolution of the Earth's magnetic field in the Arctic. This is the first study carried out at the lake that focus on the palaeomagnetic record. It presents the relative palaeointensity and palaeosecular variation of the upper 38 m of sediment core Co1401, spanning ~62 kyr. A comparable high-resolution record of this time does not exist in the Eurasian Arctic.
P. Oyunbat, O. Batkhishig, B. Batsaikhan, F. Lehmkuhl, M. Knippertz, and V. Nottebaum
Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., XLIII-B4-2021, 123–133, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLIII-B4-2021-123-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-archives-XLIII-B4-2021-123-2021, 2021
Dominik Brill, Simon Matthias May, Nadia Mhammdi, Georgina King, Benjamin Lehmann, Christoph Burow, Dennis Wolf, Anja Zander, and Helmut Brückner
Earth Surf. Dynam., 9, 205–234, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-205-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-205-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Wave-transported boulders are important records for storm and tsunami impact over geological timescales. Their use for hazard assessment requires chronological information. We investigated the potential of a new dating technique, luminescence rock surface exposure dating, for estimating transport ages of wave-emplaced boulders. Our results indicate that the new approach may provide chronological information on decadal to millennial timescales for boulders not datable by any other method so far.
Hans von Suchodoletz, Christiane Richter, Frank Walther, Marcel Bliedtner, Mariam Eloshvili, Levan Losaberidze, and Bernhard Hausdorf
E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 69, 247–260, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-69-247-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-69-247-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
We studied snails from Holocene river sediments of the upper Alazani River in the southeastern Caucasus. Since no natural floodplain forests existed in the river valley until ca. 4500 years ago, our snail data confirm a formerly suggested regional settlement center from the ca. 8000 years unknown thus far. Furthermore, increasing proportions of water-related snails for ca. 4000 years indicate a shift of the river course possibly linked with the formation of the Greater Caucasus.
D. Hoffmeister, M. Herbrecht, T. Kramm, and P. Schulte
ISPRS Ann. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci., IV-3-W2-2020, 25–28, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-annals-IV-3-W2-2020-25-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/isprs-annals-IV-3-W2-2020-25-2020, 2020
Cited articles
Allen, J. R. L. and Thornley, D. M.: Laser granulometry of Holocene estuarine silts: effects of hydrogen peroxide treatment, Holocene, 14, 290–295, https://doi.org/10.1191/0959683604hl681rr, 2004.
Antoine, P., Rousseau, D.-D., Zöller, L., Lang, A., Munaut, A.-V., Hatté, C., and Fontugne, M.: High-resolution record of the last Interglacial–glacial cycle in the Nussloch loess–palaeosol sequences, Upper Rhine Area, Germany, Quatern. Int., 76–77, 211–229, https://doi.org/10.1016/S1040-6182(00)00104-X, 2001.
Antoine, P., Catt, J., Lautridou, J.-P., and Sommé, J.: The loess and coversands of northern France and southern England, J. Quaternary Sci., 18, 309–318, https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.750, 2003.
Antoine, P., Rousseau, D.-D., Moine, O., Kunesch, S., Hatté, C., Lang, A., Tissoux, H., and Zöller, L.: Rapid and cyclic aeolian deposition during the Last Glacial in European loess: a high-resolution record from Nussloch, Germany, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 28, 2955–2973, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2009.08.001, 2009.
Antoine, P., Rousseau, D.-D., Degeai, J.-P., Moine, O., Lagroix, F., Kreutzer, S., Fuchs, M., Hatté, C., Gauthier, C., Svoboda, J., and Lisá, L.: High-resolution record of the environmental response to climatic variations during the Last Interglacial–Glacial cycle in Central Europe: the loess-palaeosol sequence of Dolní Věstonice (Czech Republic), Quaternary Sci. Rev., 67, 17–38, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2013.01.014, 2013.
Antoine, P., Goval, E., Jamet, G., Coutard, S., Moine, O., Hérisson, D., Auguste, P., Guérin, G., Lagroix, F., Schmidt, E., Robert, V., Debenham, N., Meszner, S., and Bahain, J.-J.: Les séquences loessiques pléistocène supérieur d'Havrincourt (Pas-de-Calais, France): stratigraphie, paléoenvironnements, géochronologie et occupations paléolithiques, Quaternaire, 25, 321–368, https://doi.org/10.4000/quaternaire.7278, 2014.
Antoine, P., Coutard, S., Guerin, G., Deschodt, L., Goval, E., Locht, J.-L., and Paris, C.: Upper Pleistocene loess-palaeosol records from Northern France in the European context: Environmental background and dating of the Middle Palaeolithic, Quatern. Int., 411, 4–24, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2015.11.036, 2016.
Auclair, M., Lamothe, M., and Huot, S.: Measurement of anomalous fading for feldspar IRSL using SAR, Radiat. Meas., 37, 487–492, https://doi.org/10.1016/S1350-4487(03)00018-0, 2003.
Baykal, Y., Stevens, T., Engström-Johansson, A., Skurzyński, J., Zhang, H., He, J., Lu, H., Adamiec, G., Költringer, C., and Jary, Z.: Detrital zircon U–Pb age analysis of last glacial loess sources and proglacial sediment dynamics in the Northern European Plain, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 274, 107265, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2021.107265, 2021.
Boenigk, W. and Frechen, M.: The Pliocene and Quaternary fluvial archives of the Rhine system, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 25, 550–574, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2005.01.018, 2006.
Bokhorst, M. P., Vandenberghe, J., Sümegi, P., Łanczont, M., Gerasimenko, N. P., Matviishina, Z. N., Marković, S. B., and Frechen, M.: Atmospheric circulation patterns in central and eastern Europe during the Weichselian Pleniglacial inferred from loess grain-size records, Quatern. Int., 234, 62–74, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2010.07.018, 2011.
Böse, M., Ehlers, J., and Lehmkuhl, F.: Der Mittelgebirgsrand, in: Deutschlands Norden, Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg, 63–87, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-662-64361-7_4, 2022.
Durcan, J. A., King, G., and Duller, G. A. T.: DRAC: Dose Rate and Age Calculator for trapped charge dating, Quat. Geochronol., 28, 54–61, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2015.03.012, 2015.
Eckmeier, E. and Gerlach, R.: Characterization of Archaeological Soils and Sediments Using VIS Spectroscopy, eTopoi – Journal for Ancient Studies, 3, 285–290, https://doi.org/10.17169/refubium-21739, 2012.
Fenn, K., Durcan, J. A., Thomas, D. S. G., Millar, I. L., and Marković, S. B.: Re-analysis of late Quaternary dust mass accumulation rates in Serbia using new luminescence chronology for loess–palaeosol sequence at Surduk, Boreas, 49, 634–652, https://doi.org/10.1111/bor.12445, 2020.
Fenn, K., Thomas, D. S. G., Durcan, J. A., Millar, I. L., Veres, D., Piermattei, A., and Lane, C. S.: A tale of two signals: Global and local influences on the Late Pleistocene loess sequences in Bulgarian Lower Danube, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 274, 107264, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2021.107264, 2021.
Fernández-Steeger, T., Grützner, C., Reicherter, K., and Schaub, A.: Aquisgrani terrae motus factus est (part 1): The Aachen cathedral (Germany) built on weak ground?, Quatern. Int., 242, 138–148, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2011.05.004, 2011.
Fischer, P., Hilgers, A., Protze, J., Kels, H., Lehmkuhl, F., and Gerlach, R.: Formation and geochronology of Last Interglacial to Lower Weichselian loess/palaeosol sequences – case studies from the Lower Rhine Embayment, Germany, E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 61, 48–63, https://doi.org/10.3285/eg.61.1.04, 2012.
Fischer, P., Hambach, U., Klasen, N., Schulte, P., Zeeden, C., Steininger, F., Lehmkuhl, F., Gerlach, R., and Radtke, U.: Landscape instability at the end of MIS 3 in western Central Europe: evidence from a multi proxy study on a Loess-Palaeosol-Sequence from the eastern Lower Rhine Embayment, Germany, Quatern. Int., 502, 119–136, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2017.09.008, 2017.
Fischer, P., Jöris, O., Fitzsimmons, K. E., Vinnepand, M., Prud'homme, C., Schulte, P., Hatté, C., Hambach, U., Lindauer, S., Zeeden, C., Peric, Z., Lehmkuhl, F., Wunderlich, T., Wilken, D., Schirmer, W., and Vött, A.: Millennial-scale terrestrial ecosystem responses to Upper Pleistocene climatic changes: 4D-reconstruction of the Schwalbenberg Loess-Palaeosol-Sequence (Middle Rhine Valley, Germany), CATENA, 196, 104913, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2020.104913, 2021.
Frechen, M., Schweitzer, U., and Zander, A.: Improvements in sample preparation for the fine grain technique, Anc. TL, 14, 15–17, 1996.
Frechen, M., Oches, E. A., and Kohfeld, K. E.: Loess in Europe – mass accumulation rates during the Last Glacial Period, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 22, 1835–1857, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0277-3791(03)00183-5, 2003.
Gerlach, R.: Holozän: Die Umgestaltung der Landschaft durch den Menschen seit dem Neolithikum, in: Urgeschichte im Rheinland, edited by: Kunow, J. and Wegner, H., Verlag des Rheinischen Vereins für Denkmalpflege und Landschaftsschutz, Köln, 87–98, ISBN 9783880948143, 2006.
Gerlach, R., Baumewerd-Schmidt, H., van den Borg, K., Eckmeier, E., and Schmidt, M. W. I.: Prehistoric alteration of soil in the Lower Rhine Basin, Northwest Germany – archaeological, 14C and geochemical evidence, Geoderma, 136, 38–50, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2006.01.011, 2006.
Gerz, J.: Prähistorische Mensch-Umwelt-Interaktionen im Spiegel von Kolluvien und Befundböden in zwei Löss-Altsiedellandschaften mit unterschiedlicher Boden- und Kulturgeschichte (Schwarzerderegion bei Halle/Saale und Parabraunerderegion Niederrheinische Bucht), Universitäts- und Stadtbibliothek Köln, Köln, URN urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-75297, 2017.
Grützner, C., Fischer, P., and Reicherter, K.: Holocene surface ruptures of the Rurrand Fault, Germany – insights from palaeoseismology, remote sensing and shallow geophysics, Geophys. J. Int., 204, 1662–1677, https://doi.org/10.1093/gji/ggv558, 2016.
Haesaerts, P., Juvigne, E., Kuyl, O., Mucher, H., and Roebroeks, W.: An account of the excursion of June, 13, 1981 in the Hesbaye area and to Dutch Limbourg, devoted to the chronostratigraphy of Upper Pleistocene loess, Ann.-Soc. Geol. Belg., 104, 223–240, 1981.
Haesaerts, P., Mestdagh, H., and Bosquet, D.: La séquence loessique de Remicourt (Hesbaye, Belgique), Notae Praehistoricae, 17, 45–52, 1997.
Haesaerts, P., Pirson, S., and Meijs, E.: Revised Lithostratigraphy of the aeolian loess deposits. Addendum to F. Gullentops et al. 2001. “Quaternary lithostratigraphic units (Belgium)”, Geol. Belg., 4, 153–164, 2011.
Haesaerts, P., Damblon, F., Gerasimenko, N., Spagna, P., and Pirson, S.: The Late Pleistocene loess-palaeosol sequence of Middle Belgium, Quatern. Int., 411, 25–43, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2016.02.012, 2016.
Hatté, C., Antoine, P., Fontugne, M., Lang, A., Rousseau, D.-D., and Zöller, L.: δ13C of Loess Organic Matter as a Potential Proxy for Paleoprecipitation, Quaternary Res., 55, 33–38, https://doi.org/10.1006/qres.2000.2191, 2001.
Hatté, C., Gauthier, C., Rousseau, D.-D., Antoine, P., Fuchs, M., Lagroix, F., Marković, S. B., Moine, O., and Sima, A.: Excursions to C4 vegetation recorded in the Upper Pleistocene loess of Surduk (Northern Serbia): an organic isotope geochemistry study, Clim. Past, 9, 1001–1014, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-9-1001-2013, 2013.
Henze, N.: Kennzeichnung des Oberwürmlösses der Niederrheinischen Bucht, Geologisches Institut der Universität zu Köln, Dissertation, Köln, 212 pp., ISBN 978-3-934027-00-8, 1998.
Hošek, J., Lisá, L., Hambach, U., Petr, L., Vejrostová, L., Bajer, A., Grygar, T. M., Moska, P., Gottvald, Z., and Horsák, M.: Middle Pleniglacial pedogenesis on the northwestern edge of the Carpathian basin: A multidisciplinary investigation of the Bíňa pedo-sedimentary section, SW Slovakia, Palaeogeogr. Palaeoclimatol. Palaeoecol., 487, 321–339, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2017.09.017, 2017.
ISO 20693: Soil quality – Determination of carbonate content – Volumetric method, International Organization for Standardization, Geneva, 1995.
Jary, Z.: Periglacial markers within the Late Pleistocene loess–palaeosol sequences in Poland and Western Ukraine, Quatern. Int., 198, 124–135, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2008.01.008, 2009.
Jary, Z. and Ciszek, D.: Late Pleistocene loess–palaeosol sequences in Poland and western Ukraine, Quatern. Int., 296, 37–50, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2012.07.009, 2013.
Kappler, C., Kaiser, K., Tanski, P., Klos, F., Fülling, A., Mrotzek, A., Sommer, M., and Bens, O.: Stratigraphy and age of colluvial deposits indicating Late Holocene soil erosion in northeastern Germany, CATENA, 170, 224–245, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2018.06.010, 2018.
Kels, H.: Bau und Bilanzierung der Lössdecke am westlichen Niederrhein, Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, URN urn:nbn:de:hbz:061-20070220-084835-4, 2007.
Klasen, N., Fischer, P., Lehmkuhl, F., and Hilgers, A.: Luminescence dating of loess deposits from the Remagen-Schwalbenberg site, Western Germany, Geochronometria, 42, https://doi.org/10.1515/geochr-2015-0008, 2015.
Klinge, M., Lehmkuhl, F., Schulte, P., Hülle, D., and Nottebaum, V.: Implications of (reworked) aeolian sediments and paleosols for Holocene environmental change in Western Mongolia, Geomorphology, 292, 59–71, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2017.04.027, 2017.
Knaak, M., Becker, S., Steffens, W., Mustereit, B., Hartkopf-Fröder, C., Prinz, L., Stichling, S., Schulte, P., and Lehmkuhl, F.: Boden des Jahres 2021 – ein Lössprofil auf der Aldenhovener Lössplatte, in: Archäologie im Rheinland 2020, Nünnerich-Asmus, Oppenheim, ISBN 978-3-96176-162-3, 2021.
Koch, R. and Neumeister, H.: Zur Klassifikation von Lösssedimenten nach genetischen Kriterien (About the classification of loess sediments using genetic criteria), Z. Geomorphol. NF, 49, 183–203, 2005.
Krauß, L., Zens, J., Zeeden, C., Schulte, P., Eckmeier, E., and Lehmkuhl, F.: A multi-proxy analysis of two loess-paleosol sequences in the northern Harz foreland, Germany, Palaeogeogr. Palaeoclimatol. Palaeoecol., 461, 401–417, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2016.09.001, 2016.
Krauß, L., Klasen, N., Schulte, P., and Lehmkuhl, F.: New results concerning the pedo- and chronostratigraphy of the loess–palaeosol sequence Attenfeld (Bavaria, Germany) derived from a multi-methodological approach, J. Quaternary Sci., 36, 1382–1396, https://doi.org/10.1002/jqs.3298, 2021.
Kühn, P., Lehndorff, E., and Fuchs, M.: Lateglacial to Holocene pedogenesis and formation of colluvial deposits in a loess landscape of Central Europe (Wetterau, Germany), CATENA, 154, 118–135, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2017.02.015, 2017.
Kukla, G., Heller, F., Ming, L. X., Chun, X. T., Sheng, L. T., and Sheng, A. Z.: Pleistocene climates in China dated by magnetic susceptibility, Geology, 16, 811–814, https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1988)016<0811:PCICDB>2.3.CO;2, 1988.
Lehmkuhl, F.: Modern and past periglacial features in Central Asia and their implication for paleoclimate reconstructions, Prog. Phys. Geogr. Earth Environ., 40, 369–391, https://doi.org/10.1177/0309133315615778, 2016.
Lehmkuhl, F., Wirtz, S., Falk, D., and Kels, H.: Geowissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zur Landschaftsentwicklung im Tagebau Garzweiler – LANU-Projekt 2012–2014, in: Archäologie im Rheinland 2014, edited by: Kunow, J. and Trier, M., Theiss Verlag, Stuttgart, 64–66, ISBN 978-3-8062-3214-1, 2015.
Lehmkuhl, F., Zens, J., Krauß, L., Schulte, P., and Kels, H.: Loess-paleosol sequences at the northern European loess belt in Germany: Distribution, geomorphology and stratigraphy, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 153, 11–30, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2016.10.008, 2016.
Lehmkuhl, F., Pötter, S., Pauligk, A., and Bösken, J.: Loess and other Quaternary sediments in Germany, J. Maps, 14, 330–340, https://doi.org/10.1080/17445647.2018.1473817, 2018.
Lehmkuhl, F., Nett, J. J., Pötter, S., Schulte, P., Sprafke, T., Jary, Z., Antoine, P., Wacha, L., Wolf, D., Zerboni, A., Hošek, J., Marković, S. B., Obreht, I., Sümegi, P., Veres, D., Zeeden, C., Boemke, B. J., Schaubert, V., Viehweger, J., and Hambach, U.: Loess landscapes of Europe – mapping, geomorphology, and zonal differentiation, Earth-Sci. Rev., 215, 103496, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2020.103496, 2021.
Marković, S. B., McCoy, W. D., Oches, E. A., Savic, S., Gaudenyi, T., Jovanovic, M., Stevens, T., Walther, R., Ivanisevic, P., and Galic, Z.: Paleoclimate record in the Upper Pleistocene loess-paleosol sequence at Petrovaradin brickyard (Vojvodina, Serbia), Geol. Carpathica, 56, 545–552, 2005.
Marković, S. B., Stevens, T., Kukla, G. J., Hambach, U., Fitzsimmons, K. E., Gibbard, P., Buggle, B., Zech, M., Guo, Z., Hao, Q., Wu, H., O'Hara Dhand, K., Smalley, I. J., Újvári, G., Sümegi, P., Timar-Gabor, A., Veres, D., Sirocko, F., Vasiljević, D. A., Jary, Z., Svensson, A., Jović, V., Lehmkuhl, F., Kovács, J., and Svirčev, Z.: Danube loess stratigraphy – Towards a pan-European loess stratigraphic model, Earth-Sci. Rev., 148, 228–258, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2015.06.005, 2015.
Marković, S. B., Stevens, T., Mason, J., Vandenberghe, J., Yang, S., Veres, D., Újvári, G., Timar-Gabor, A., Zeeden, C., Guo, Z., Hao, Q., Obreht, I., Hambach, U., Wu, H., Gavrilov, M. B., Rolf, C., Tomić, N., and Lehmkuhl, F.: Loess correlations – Between myth and reality, Palaeogeogr. Palaeoclimatol. Palaeoecol., 509, 4–23, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2018.04.018, 2018.
Mayr, C., Matzke-Karasz, R., Stojakowits, P., Lowick, S. E., Zolitschka, B., Heigl, T., Mollath, R., Theuerkauf, M., Weckend, M.-O., Bäumler, R., and Gregor, H.-J.: Palaeoenvironments during MIS 3 and MIS 2 inferred from lacustrine intercalations in the loess–palaeosol sequence at Bobingen (southern Germany), E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 66, 73–89, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-66-73-2017, 2017.
Meijs, E. P. M.: Loess stratigraphy in Dutch and Belgian Limburg, E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 51, 115–131, https://doi.org/10.3285/eg.51.1.08, 2002.
Meszner, S., Fuchs, M., and Faust, D.: Loess-Palaeosol-Sequences from the loess area of Saxony (Germany), E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 60, 4, https://doi.org/10.3285/eg.60.1.03, 2011.
Meszner, S., Kreutzer, S., Fuchs, M., and Faust, D.: Late Pleistocene landscape dynamics in Saxony, Germany: Paleoenvironmental reconstruction using loess-paleosol sequences, Quatern. Int., 296, 94–107, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2012.12.040, 2013.
Meszner, S., Kreutzer, S., Fuchs, M., and Faust, D.: Identifying depositional and pedogenetic controls of Late Pleistocene loess-paleosol sequences (Saxony, Germany) by combined grain size and microscopic analyses, Z. Geomorphol., 58, 63–90, https://doi.org/10.1127/0372-8854/2014/S-00169, 2014.
Meyer-Heintze, S., Sprafke, T., Schulte, P., Terhorst, B., Lomax, J., Fuchs, M., Lehmkuhl, F., Neugebauer-Maresch, C., Einwögerer, T., Händel, M., Simon, U., and Solís Castillo, B.: The MIS 3/2 transition in a new loess profile at Krems-Wachtberg East – A multi-methodological approach, Quatern. Int., 464, 370–385, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2017.11.048, 2018.
Moine, O.: West-european malacofauna from loess deposits of the weichselian upper pleniglacial: Compilation and preliminary analysis of the database, Quaternaire, 19, 11–29, https://doi.org/10.4000/quaternaire.1532, 2008.
Murray, A. S. and Wintle, A. G.: Luminescence dating of quartz using an improved single-aliquot regenerative-dose protocol, Radiat. Meas., 32, 57–73, https://doi.org/10.1016/S1350-4487(99)00253-X, 2000.
Nesbitt, H. W. and Young, G. M.: Early Proterozoic climates and plate motions inferred from major element chemistry of lutites, Nature, 299, 715–717, https://doi.org/10.1038/299715a0, 1982.
Nesbitt, H. W. and Young, G. M.: Prediction of some weathering trends of plutonic and volcanic rocks based on thermodynamic and kinetic considerations, Geochim. Cosmochim. Ac., 48, 1523–1534, https://doi.org/10.1016/0016-7037(84)90408-3, 1984.
Nottebaum, V., Stauch, G., Hartmann, K., Zhang, J., and Lehmkuhl, F.: Unmixed loess grain size populations along the northern Qilian Shan (China): Relationships between geomorphologic, sedimentologic and climatic controls, Quatern. Int., 372, 151–166, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2014.12.071, 2015.
Obreht, I., Zeeden, C., Schulte, P., Hambach, U., Eckmeier, E., Timar-Gabor, A., and Lehmkuhl, F.: Aeolian dynamics at the Orlovat loess–paleosol sequence, northern Serbia, based on detailed textural and geochemical evidence, Aeolian Res., 18, 69–81, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2015.06.004, 2015.
Obreht, I., Hambach, U., Veres, D., Zeeden, C., Bösken, J., Stevens, T., Marković, S. B., Klasen, N., Brill, D., Burow, C., and Lehmkuhl, F.: Shift of large-scale atmospheric systems over Europe during late MIS 3 and implications for Modern Human dispersal, Sci. Rep., 7, 5848, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-06285-x, 2017.
Ohta, T.: Geochemistry of Jurassic to earliest Cretaceous deposits in the Nagato Basin, SW Japan: implication of factor analysis to sorting effects and provenance signatures, Sediment. Geol., 171, 159–180, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sedgeo.2004.05.014, 2004.
Özer, M., Orhan, M., and Işik, N. S.: Effect of particle optical properties on size distribution of soils obtained by laser diffraction, Environ. Eng. Geosci., 16, 163–173, 2010.
Pécsi, M.: Loess is not just the accumulation of dust, Quatern. Int., 7–8, 1–21, https://doi.org/10.1016/1040-6182(90)90034-2, 1990.
Pécsi, M. and Richter, G.: Löß: Herkunft – Gliederung – Landschaften, Borntraeger, Berlin, 391 pp., ISBN 978-3-443-21098-4, 1996.
Pötter, S., Veres, D., Baykal, Y., Nett, J. J., Schulte, P., Hambach, U., and Lehmkuhl, F.: Disentangling sedimentary pathways for the Pleniglacial Lower Danube loess based on geochemical signatures, Front. Earth Sci., 9, 1–25, https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2021.600010, 2021.
Protze, J.: Eine “Mensch gemachte Landschaft” – Diachrone, geochemische und sedimentologische Untersuchungen an anthropogen beeinflussten Sedimenten und Böden der Niederrheinischen Lössbörde, Hochschulbibliothek der Rheinisch-Westfälischen Technischen Hochschule Aachen, Aachen, URN urn:nbn:de:hbz:82-opus-49066, 2014.
Rahimzadeh, N., Sprafke, T., Thiel, C., Terhorst, B., and Frechen, M.: A comparison of polymineral and K-feldspar post-infrared infrared stimulated luminescence ages of loess from Franconia, southern Germany, E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 70, 53–71, https://doi.org/10.5194/egqsj-70-53-2021, 2021.
Reicherter, K., Schaub, A., Fernández-Steeger, T., Grützner, C., and Kohlberger-Schaub, T.: Aquisgrani terrae motus factus est (part 2): Evidence for medieval earthquake damage in the Aachen Cathedral (Germany), Quatern. Int., 242, 149–157, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2011.05.006, 2011.
Rousseau, D.-D. and Hatté, C.: Ground-Air Interface: The Loess Sequences, Markers of Atmospheric Circulation, in: Paleoclimatology, edited by: Ramstein, G., Landais, A., Bouttes, N., Sepulchre, P., and Govin, A., Springer International Publishing, Cham, 157–167, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-24982-3_13, 2021.
Rousseau, D.-D., Antoine, P., and Sun, Y.: How dusty was the last glacial maximum over Europe?, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 254, 106775, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2020.106775, 2021.
Schaller, K.: Praktikum Zur Bodenkunde Und Pflanzenernährung, 8th edn., Forschungsanstalt Geisenheim, Geisenheim, ISBN 978-3980187213, 2000.
Schirmer, W.: Eine Klimakurve des Oberpleistozäns aus dem rheinischen Löss, E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 50, 25–49, https://doi.org/10.3285/eg.50.1.02, 2000.
Schirmer, W.: Compendium of the Rhein loess sequence, Terra Nostra, 10, 8–23, 2002.
Schirmer, W.: Die Eben-Zone im Oberwürmlöss zwischen Maas und Rhein, in: Landschaftsgeschichte im Europäischen Rheinland, vol. 4, edited by: Schirmer, W., LIT Verlag, Münster, 351–416, ISBN 978-3-825-86009-7, 2003.
Schirmer, W.: Late Pleistocene loess of the Lower Rhine, Quatern. Int., 411, 44–61, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2016.01.034, 2016.
Schirmer, W., Ikinger, A., and Nehring, F.: Die terrestrischen Böden im Profil Schwalbenberg/Mittelrhein (Terrestrial soils of the Schwalbenberg profile/Middle Rhine), Mainzer Geowissenschaftliche Mitteilungen, 40, 53–78, 2012.
Schulte, P. and Lehmkuhl, F.: The difference of two laser diffraction patterns as an indicator for post-depositional grain size reduction in loess-paleosol sequences, Palaeogeogr. Palaeoclimatol. Palaeoecol., 509, 126–136, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2017.02.022, 2018.
Schulte, P., Lehmkuhl, F., Steininger, F., Loibl, D., Lockot, G., Protze, J., Fischer, P., and Stauch, G.: Influence of HCl pretreatment and organo-mineral complexes on laser diffraction measurement of loess–paleosol-sequences, CATENA, 137, 392–405, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2015.10.015, 2016.
Schulz, W.: Die Kolluvien der westlichen Kölner Bucht – Gliederung, Entstehungszeit und geomorphologische Bedeutung, Universitäts- und Stadtbibliothek Köln, Cologne, Germany, URN urn:nbn:de:hbz:38-19656, 2007.
Sedov, S., Rusakov, A., Sheinkman, V., and Korkka, M.: MIS3 paleosols in the center-north of Eastern Europe and Western Siberia: Reductomorphic pedogenesis conditioned by permafrost?, CATENA, 146, 38–47, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2016.03.022, 2016.
Sirocko, F., Knapp, H., Dreher, F., Förster, M. W., Albert, J., Brunck, H., Veres, D., Dietrich, S., Zech, M., Hambach, U., Röhner, M., Rudert, S., Schwibus, K., Adams, C., and Sigl, P.: The ELSA-Vegetation-Stack: Reconstruction of Landscape Evolution Zones (LEZ) from laminated Eifel maar sediments of the last 60 000 years, Glob. Planet. Change, 142, 108–135, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2016.03.005, 2016.
Skurzyński, J., Jary, Z., Raczyk, J., Moska, P., Korabiewski, B., Ryzner, K., and Krawczyk, M.: Geochemical characterization of the Late Pleistocene loess-palaeosol sequence in Tyszowce (Sokal Plateau-Ridge, SE Poland), Quatern. Int., 502, 108–118, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2018.04.023, 2019.
Skurzyński, J., Jary, Z., Kenis, P., Kubik, R., Moska, P., Raczyk, J., and Seul, C.: Geochemistry and mineralogy of the Late Pleistocene loess-palaeosol sequence in Złota (near Sandomierz, Poland): Implications for weathering, sedimentary recycling and provenance, Geoderma, 375, 114459, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geoderma.2020.114459, 2020.
Sprafke, T. and Obreht, I.: Loess: Rock, sediment or soil – What is missing for its definition?, Quatern. Int., 399, 198–207, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2015.03.033, 2016.
Stadelmaier, K. H., Ludwig, P., Bertran, P., Antoine, P., Shi, X., Lohmann, G., and Pinto, J. G.: A new perspective on permafrost boundaries in France during the Last Glacial Maximum, Clim. Past, 17, 2559–2576, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-2559-2021, 2021.
Steup, R. and Fuchs, M.: The loess sequence at Münzenberg (Wetterau/Germany): A reinterpretation based on new luminescence dating results, Z. Geomorphol., 61, 101–120, https://doi.org/10.1127/zfg_suppl/2016/0408, 2017.
Stevens, T., Sechi, D., Bradák, B., Orbe, R., Baykal, Y., Cossu, G., Tziavaras, C., Andreucci, S., and Pascucci, V.: Abrupt last glacial dust fall over southeast England associated with dynamics of the British-Irish ice sheet, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 250, 106641, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2020.106641, 2020.
Sümegi, P., Náfrádi, K., Molnár, D., and Sávai, S.: Results of paleoecological studies in the loess region of Szeged-Öthalom (SE Hungary), Quatern. Int., 372, 66–78, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2014.09.003, 2015.
Svirčev, Z., Marković, S. B., Stevens, T., Codd, G. A., Smalley, I., Simeunović, J., Obreht, I., Dulić, T., Pantelić, D., and Hambach, U.: Importance of biological loess crusts for loess formation in semi-arid environments, Quatern. Int., 296, 206–215, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2012.10.048, 2013.
Thiel, C., Buylaert, J.-P., Murray, A., Terhorst, B., Hofer, I., Tsukamoto, S., and Frechen, M.: Luminescence dating of the Stratzing loess profile (Austria) – Testing the potential of an elevated temperature post-IR IRSL protocol, Quatern. Int., 234, 23–31, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2010.05.018, 2011.
Torre, G., Gaiero, D. M., Cosentino, N. J., and Coppo, R.: The paleoclimatic message from the polymodal grain-size distribution of late Pleistocene-early Holocene Pampean loess (Argentina), Aeolian Res., 42, 100563, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2019.100563, 2020.
Vandenberghe, J., French, H. M., Gorbunov, A., Marchenko, S., Velichko, A. A., Jin, H., Cui, Z., Zhang, T., and Wan, X.: The Last Permafrost Maximum (LPM) map of the Northern Hemisphere: permafrost extent and mean annual air temperatures, 25–17 ka BP: The Last Permafrost Maximum (LPM) map of the Northern Hemisphere, Boreas, 43, 652–666, https://doi.org/10.1111/bor.12070, 2014.
Varga, A., Újvári, G., and Raucsik, B.: Tectonic versus climatic control on the evolution of a loess–paleosol sequence at Beremend, Hungary: an integrated approach based on paleoecological, clay mineralogical, and geochemical data, Quatern. Int., 240, 71–86, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2010.10.032, 2011.
Veres, D., Tecsa, V., Gerasimenko, N., Zeeden, C., Hambach, U., and Timar-Gabor, A.: Short-term soil formation events in last glacial east European loess, evidence from multi-method luminescence dating, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 200, 34–51, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2018.09.037, 2018.
Vinnepand, M., Fischer, P., Fitzsimmons, K., Thornton, B., Fiedler, S., and Vött, A.: Combining Inorganic and Organic Carbon Stable Isotope Signatures in the Schwalbenberg Loess-Palaeosol-Sequence Near Remagen (Middle Rhine Valley, Germany), Front. Earth Sci., 8, 276, https://doi.org/10.3389/feart.2020.00276, 2020.
Vinnepand, M., Fischer, P., Jöris, O., Hambach, U., Zeeden, C., Schulte, P., Fitzsimmons, K. E., Prud'homme, C., Perić, Z., Schirmer, W., Lehmkuhl, F., Fiedler, S., and Vött, A.: Decoding geochemical signals of the Schwalbenberg Loess-Palaeosol-Sequences – A key to Upper Pleistocene ecosystem responses to climate changes in western Central Europe, CATENA, 212, 106076, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2022.106076, 2022.
Vlaminck, S., Kehl, M., Lauer, T., Shahriari, A., Sharifi, J., Eckmeier, E., Lehndorff, E., Khormali, F., and Frechen, M.: Loess-soil sequence at Toshan (Northern Iran): Insights into late Pleistocene climate change, Quatern. Int., 399, 122–135, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2015.04.028, 2016.
Zech, M., Zech, R., Buggle, B., and Zöller, L.: Novel methodological approaches in loess research – interrogating biomarkers and compound-specific stable isotopes, E&G Quaternary Sci. J., 60, 13, https://doi.org/10.3285/eg.60.1.12, 2011.
Zech, R., Zech, M., Marković, S., Hambach, U., and Huang, Y.: Humid glacials, arid interglacials? Critical thoughts on pedogenesis and paleoclimate based on multi-proxy analyses of the loess–paleosol sequence Crvenka, Northern Serbia, Palaeogeogr. Palaeoclimatol. Palaeoecol., 387, 165–175, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2013.07.023, 2013.
Zens, J., Zeeden, C., Römer, W., Fuchs, M., Klasen, N., and Lehmkuhl, F.: The Eltville Tephra (Western Europe) age revised: Integrating stratigraphic and dating information from different Last Glacial loess localities, Palaeogeogr. Palaeoclimatol. Palaeoecol., 466, 240–251, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2016.11.033, 2017.
Zens, J., Schulte, P., Klasen, N., Krauß, L., Pirson, S., Burow, C., Brill, D., Eckmeier, E., Kels, H., Zeeden, C., Spagna, P., and Lehmkuhl, F.: OSL chronologies of paleoenvironmental dynamics recorded by loess-paleosol sequences from Europe: Case studies from the Rhine-Meuse area and the Neckar Basin, Palaeogeogr. Palaeoclimatol. Palaeoecol., 509, 105–125, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2017.07.019, 2018.
Short summary
We reconstructed a wetland environment for a late Middle to Upper Pleniglacial (approx. 30–20 ka) loess sequence in western Germany. Typically, these sequences reveal terrestrial conditions with soil formation processes during this time frame. The here-investigated section, however, was influenced by periodical flooding, leading to marshy conditions and a stressed ecosystem. Our results show that the landscape of the study area was much more fragmented during this time than previously thought.
We reconstructed a wetland environment for a late Middle to Upper Pleniglacial (approx....
