Melting history of the Patagonian Ice Sheet during Termination I inferred from marine sediments

Abstract

To investigate the melting history of the Patagonian Ice Sheet (PIS) during the last deglaciation, we reconstructed Al₂O₃ flux in sediments from the Magellanes fjord (53°S) and southern Patagonia (55°S: Drake Passage) over the past 12 and 31 kiloyears (kyr), respectively. We confirm that the melting history of the PIS is recorded as changes in sedimentological signals and find that the melting ceased between ~10 and 8 Calendar kyr before present (cal kyr BP). The timing of major melting events of the PIS was similar to that of the Northern Hemisphere ice sheets.