Modern terrigenous sediment sources and past changes in precipitation over tropical South America recorded in terrigenous sediments deposited in the western tropical Atlantic

Abstract

A comprehensive calibration of proxies based on modern environmental conditions is of utmost importance for the appropriate interpretation of paleoenvironmental signals. In this project we will determine the major and minor elemental signature of modern sediments transported by the main tributaries of the Amazon River drainage basin and apply these signatures to assess past changes in precipitation over tropical South America. Therefore, we will analyze the major and minor elemental composition of modern fluvial suspended sediments and a marine sediment core from tropical South America and the western tropical Atlantic, respectively. By doing this, we will provide on the one hand an in-depth understanding about the geochemical signatures of the sources of terrigenous sediments deposited off NE South America, and on the other hand a high temporal resolution reconstruction of Amazonian hydroclimate changes for the last ca. 250 kyr. (AU)