U-Pb dating of speleothems from Spannagel Cave, Austrian Alps: a high resolution comparison with U-series ages
U-Pb dating is increasingly used to date speleothems that are too old for precise U-Th disequilibrium dating; however there is little data that can independently validate its application to such material. This study presents U-Pb ages for speleothems from the Spannagel Cave in the Austrian Alps incl...
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| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article (Journal) |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2010
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| In: |
Quaternary geochronology
Year: 2010, Volume: 5, Issue: 4, Pages: 452-458 |
| ISSN: | 1871-1014 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.quageo.2009.12.002 |
| Online Access: | Verlag, lizenzpflichtig, Volltext: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quageo.2009.12.002 Verlag, lizenzpflichtig, Volltext: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1871101409001605 
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| Author Notes: | Robert A. Cliff, Christoph Spötl, Augusto Mangini |
| Summary: | U-Pb dating is increasingly used to date speleothems that are too old for precise U-Th disequilibrium dating; however there is little data that can independently validate its application to such material. This study presents U-Pb ages for speleothems from the Spannagel Cave in the Austrian Alps including a detailed comparison with U-Th ages from an unusually U-rich sample that yields precise ages by both methods. Sample SPA4 is a flowstone with three growth phases separated by distinct hiatuses. For the youngest growth phase the U-Pb and U-Th ages are 267±1ka and 267±5ka respectively; the middle growth phase is 291±1 versus 295±11ka while for the oldest growth phase a single sub-sample, assuming the same initial Pb composition as for the younger phases, yields an age of 340±2ka compared to 353±9ka by U-Th. Correlation of these ages with the marine isotope stages confirms that these speleothems grew during glacial stages as suggested by previous work on the same sample. Sample SPA 15 has U-Th isotopic compositions indistinguishable from secular equilibrium; the U-Pb data on the main growth phase of this sample give an age of 551±10ka, whereas a single analysis from the oldest phase suggests it may be on the order of 40ka older. This detailed comparison of U-Pb and U-Th ages provides important support for the potential validity of the U-Pb method in older samples beyond the range of U-Th. |
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| Item Description: | Available online 22 December 2009 Gesehen am 05.05.2023 |
| Physical Description: | Online Resource |
| ISSN: | 1871-1014 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.quageo.2009.12.002 |