Annelies van Hoesel

Identification and environmental interpretation of diagenetic and biogenic greigite in sediments: A lesson from the Messinian Black Sea

Greigite (Fe3S4) is a widespread authigenic magnetic mineral in anoxic sediments and is also commonly biosynthesized by magnetotactic bacteria in aqueous environments. While the presence of fossilized bacterial magnetite (Fe3O4) has now been widely demonstrated, the preservation of greigite magnetofossils in the geological record is only poorly constrained. Here we investigate Mio-Pliocene sediments of the former Black Sea to test whether we can detect greigite magnetofossils and to unravel potential environmental controls on greigite formation. Our magnetic analyses and transmission electron microscope (TEM) observations indicate the presence of both diagenetic and bacterial greigite, and suggest a potentially widespread preservation of greigite magnetofossils in ancient sediments, which has important implications for assessing the reliability of paleomagnetic records carried by greigite. TEM-based chemical and structural analyses also indicate the common presence of nickel-substituted diagenetic iron sulfide crystals with a ferrimagnetic greigite structure. In addition, our cyclostratigraphic framework allows correlation of magnetic properties of Messinian Black Sea sediments (Taman Peninsula, Russia) to global climate records. Diagenetic greigite enhancements appear to be climatically controlled, with greigite mainly occurring in warm/wet periods. Diagenetic greigite formation can be explained by variations in terrigenous inputs and dissolved pore water sulfate concentrations in different sedimentary environments. Our analysis demonstrates the usefulness of greigite for studying long-term climate variability in anoxic environments. Key Points: We provide evidence for the presence of biogenic greigite in ancient sediments Diagenetic greigite enhancements are climatically controlled Greigite is a paleoenvironmental indicator in anoxic environments

Nanodiamonds and wildfire evidence in the Usselo horizon postdate the Allerød-Younger Dryas boundary

The controversial Younger Dryas impact hypothesis suggests that at the onset of the Younger Dryas an extraterrestrial impact over North America caused a global catastrophe. The main evidence for this impact—after the other markers proved to be neither reproducible nor consistent with an impact—is the alleged occurrence of several nanodiamond polymorphs, including the proposed presence of lonsdaleite, a shock polymorph of diamond. We examined the Usselo soil horizon at Geldrop-Aalsterhut (The Netherlands), which formed during the Allerød/Early Younger Dryas and would have captured such impact material. Our accelerator mass spectrometry radiocarbon dates of 14 individual charcoal particles are internally consistent and show that wildfires occurred well after the proposed impact. In addition we present evidence for the occurrence of cubic diamond in glass-like carbon. No lonsdaleite was found. The relation of the cubic nanodiamonds to glass-like carbon, which is produced during wildfires, suggests that these nanodiamonds might have formed after, rather than at the onset of, the Younger Dryas. Our analysis thus provides no support for the Younger Dryas impact hypothesis.

Cosmic impact or natural fires at the Allerød–Younger Dryas boundary: A matter of dating and calibration

Wittke et al. (1) present evidence of a major cosmic impact at the onset of the Younger Dryas (YD) episode, including some markers found in the top of the well-known Usselo marker horizon (UH). This finding is contrary to our extensive radiocarbon dating effort from this horizon (2), which shows that the UH at Aalsterhut postdates the onset of the YD. Furthermore, Wittke et al. (1) misinterpret the origin of the UH: this horizon is a well-defined paleosoil that formed during the Allerod and the early YD in the top part of coversand. This coversand was deposited before the Allerod, during cold and dry conditions, and is part of the European Sandbelt. Wildfires were common and occurred throughout this period, rather than synchronously with the onset of the YD (3).

TRACE ELEMENT DISTRIBUTION AND IMPLICATIONS IN SEDIMENTS ACROSS THE ALLERØD–YOUNGER DRYAS BOUNDARY IN THE NETHERLANDS AND BELGIUM

Abstract In the Northern Hemisphere, the Younger Dryas cooling occurred between 12.8 and 11.7 ka bp. This cooling is thought to have been the result of an abrupt change in atmospheric and oceanic circulations. One of the hypotheses explaining such a change suggests that just before the onset of the Younger Dryas cooling, multiple airbursts/impacts occurred over the Northern Hemisphere. We studied the late Pleistocene sediments from the Netherlands and Belgium to check whether a sudden short event might have taken place just before the onset of the Younger Dryas cooling. The geochemical features revealed suggest that such events might have occurred. The presence of products of biomass burning is suggested on the basis of trace element features of sediments from the lower Younger Dryas boundary. The presence of a volcanic component and a component resulting from extensive biomass burning in the sediments of c. 12.9 ka bp are indicated on the basis of trace element features. The volcanic component may be related to the Laacher See volcano eruption, whereas the cause of the extensive biomass burning remains unclear.