Origin of clay minerals in Early Eocene volcanic paleosols on King George Island, Maritime Antarctica.

ABSTRACT: The paleoclimate during the Early Eocene in Maritime Antarctica is characterized by cool conditions without a pronounced dry season. Soils formed on volcanic material under such climate conditions in modern analogue environments are usually Andosols rich in nanocrystalline minerals without pedogenic smectite. The paleosols formed on volcanic material on King Georges Island are covered by basalts, dated by 6 new ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar datings to 51-48 Ma, and are rich in smectite. A pedogenic origin of the smectites would suggest a semi-arid rather than a wet non-seasonal humid paleoclimate. To investigate the origin of the smectites in these paleosols we used X-ray diffraction and microscopic techniques. Minor mineralogical changes between the volcanic parent material and the pale

SUBMITTER: Spinola DN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5526868 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature