Objective
Understanding global changes in the past contributes towards the prediction of changes expected in the future. Thus detailed information must be retrieved from those natural archives which accurately record a detailed history of environmental changes through geological time. Loess, consisting of wind-blown silt-sized clastic minerals and covering about 10% of the land surface of the Earth, contains a valuable proxy climate record comparable to that of deep sea sediments and potentially provides the most complete and detailed record of environmental changes over continental areas. Thick loess deposits are widespread on river terraces and foothills in central Asia, particularly in Tadjikistan. A striking feature of the loess deposits in Tadjikistan is the alternating occurrence of loess and buried soil horizons, which record fluctuations of past climates. It is essential to place accurate chronological constraints on the loess sequence in order to understand the rate of environmental changes recorded.
The present joint project aims to establish a new chronology for the Late Pleistocene loess in Tadjikistan through a systematic luminescence dating study and to investigate the palaeoclimatic records by means of sedimentology, palaeopedology, magnetism, geochemistry, mollusc analysis and palynology. The loess sequences in central Asia contain numerous Palaeolithic artefacts. This study will, therefore, also be of considerable significance for understanding the timing of human evolution and changes in Man's environment in the region. The collaboration between the research teams is well established. Three of the four participating research institutes from the NIS have visited Cambridge University for short-term research, with support from the Royal Society during the last twelve months.
The analyses of experimental data and the palaeoclimatological implications from central Asian loess will result in scientific reports and papers. This project will not only provide a new regional chronology for the very important loess sequences in Tadjikistan, but will also have significant implications for evaluating the validity of published thermoluminescence-based chronologies for other loess regions in the NIS. As such it will contribute to the understanding of past global change.
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Programme(s)
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Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
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Funding Scheme
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Coordinator
CB2 1TS Cambridge
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.