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- Title
Quaternary eolian dunes in the Savannah River valley, Jasper County, South Carolina, USA.
- Authors
Swezey, Christopher S.; Schultz, Arthur P.; González, Wilma Alemán; Bernhardt, Christopher E.; Doar, William R.; Garrity, Christopher P.; Mahan, Shannon A.; McGeehin, John P.
- Abstract
Abstract: Sand hills in the Savannah River valley in Jasper County (South Carolina, USA) are interpreted as the remnants of parabolic eolian dunes composed of sand derived from the Savannah River and stabilized by vegetation under prevailing climate conditions. Optically stimulated luminescence ages reveal that most of the dunes were active ca. 40 to 19ka ago, coincident with the last glacial maximum (LGM) through early deglaciation. Modern surface winds are not sufficient for sustained eolian sand transport. When the dunes were active, winds blew at velocities of at least 4m/s from west to east, and some vegetation was present. The ratio of annual precipitation to potential evapotranspiration (P:PE) was less than the modern ratio of 1.23 and may have been <0.30, caused by stronger winds (which would have resulted in greater evaporation) and/or reduced precipitation. The Savannah River dunes are part of a larger assemblage of eolian dunes that were active in the eastern United States during and immediately after the LGM, suggesting that eolian sediment behavior in this region has been controlled by regional forcing mechanisms during the Quaternary.
- Subjects
SAVANNAH River Valley (Ga. &; S.C.); JASPER County (S.C.); QUATERNARY Period; EOLIAN processes; SAND dunes; THERMOLUMINESCENCE dating; CLIMATE change; EVAPOTRANSPIRATION
- Publication
Quaternary Research, 2013, Vol 80, Issue 2, p250
- ISSN
0033-5894
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1016/j.yqres.2013.06.007