Late Pleistocene deglaciation in the upper Gállego Valley, central Pyrenees

Deglaciation processes in the upper Gállego Valley, central-southern Pyrenees, were studied using geomorphological mapping and <sup>36</sup>Cl cosmogenic dating of moraine and rock glacier boulders, as well as polished bedrock. Although the precise position of the Gállego Glacier during...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Palacios, David, Andrés, Nuria de, López-Moreno, Juan I., García-Ruiz, José María
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión aceptada para publicación
Fecha de publicación:2015
País:España
Institución:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repositorio:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/120847
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/120847
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Deglaciation
Central Pyrenees
Oldest Dryas
Cosmogenic dating
Younger Dryas
Bølling/Allerød
Descripción
Sumario:Deglaciation processes in the upper Gállego Valley, central-southern Pyrenees, were studied using geomorphological mapping and <sup>36</sup>Cl cosmogenic dating of moraine and rock glacier boulders, as well as polished bedrock. Although the precise position of the Gállego Glacier during the global last glacial maximum is not known, there is evidence that ice tongues retreated to the headwaters, which caused subdivision of the main glacier into a number of individual glaciers prior to 17ka. A range of ages (16 to 11ka) was found among three tributary valleys within the general trend of deglaciation. The retreat rate to cirque was estimated to be relatively rapid (approximately 5km per ka). The mapped glacial sedimentology and geomorphology appears to support the occurrence of multiple minor advances and retreats, or periods of stasis during the late deglaciation. Geomorphological and geological differences among the tributary valleys, and error estimates associated with the results obtained, prevented unambiguous correlations of the advances with the late Pleistocene cold periods. During the latter advances, small glaciers and rock glaciers developed close to the cirque headwalls, and co-occurred under the same climatic conditions. No evidence for Holocene re-advance was found for any of the three tributary valleys. © 2015 University of Washington.