PAST EAST ANTARCTIC ICE SHEET AND GLOBAL SEA-LEVEL VARIATIONS. Unique fossil-bearing, open marine sediments occur inland from the modern Antarctic coastline. These were deposited when a now-glaciated Antarctic basin became a marine embayment, during intervals of significantly reduced ice sheet volume and elevated global sea-level in the past. Urgent palaeontological, sedimentological and geochemical research on these sediments are vital to provide: directly datable in situ evidence for major i ....PAST EAST ANTARCTIC ICE SHEET AND GLOBAL SEA-LEVEL VARIATIONS. Unique fossil-bearing, open marine sediments occur inland from the modern Antarctic coastline. These were deposited when a now-glaciated Antarctic basin became a marine embayment, during intervals of significantly reduced ice sheet volume and elevated global sea-level in the past. Urgent palaeontological, sedimentological and geochemical research on these sediments are vital to provide: directly datable in situ evidence for major ice sheet retreat and global sea-level rise in the past; and quantifiable data concerning the environment during such events; an innovative opportunity to improve predictions of Antarctica's response to global warming and answer international debate about past Antarctic Ice Sheet stability.Read moreRead less
A one million year record of relative sea-level, climatic and environmental changes - Aeolianites of the southern Australian continental margin. This project will (1) further refine two dating methods that will revolutionize Australia's capacity to date geological and archaeological events; (2) ensure that Australia remains in the forefront in applied geochronology and that a sufficient level of technical expertise remains within the country; (3) examine the sensitivity of coastal environments t ....A one million year record of relative sea-level, climatic and environmental changes - Aeolianites of the southern Australian continental margin. This project will (1) further refine two dating methods that will revolutionize Australia's capacity to date geological and archaeological events; (2) ensure that Australia remains in the forefront in applied geochronology and that a sufficient level of technical expertise remains within the country; (3) examine the sensitivity of coastal environments to rapid climate and sea-level changes; (4) increase public awareness of the scientific basis for the unique nature of Australia's coastal landscapes; and (5) may also assist in the exploration of strategically important minerals. Read moreRead less
Constraining the snowball earth: timing and duration of neoproterozoic glaciations using precise Re-Os geochronology. This project aims to investigate the onset and duration of major global glacial events during the period of Earth history when metazoan life first appeared. Understanding such processes will enable insights into both the rate and nature of evolutionary processes, and place constraints of ancient and modern climate models. This will be achieved by establishing a facility to obtain ....Constraining the snowball earth: timing and duration of neoproterozoic glaciations using precise Re-Os geochronology. This project aims to investigate the onset and duration of major global glacial events during the period of Earth history when metazoan life first appeared. Understanding such processes will enable insights into both the rate and nature of evolutionary processes, and place constraints of ancient and modern climate models. This will be achieved by establishing a facility to obtain precise Re-Os isotope age data from sediments at Adelaide University (only the second such in the world), and studying sedimentary rocks preserved in the Centralian Superbasin. A basis for global stratigraphic correlation will also result from the intended program of work.Read moreRead less
First Australians, Last Megafauna? Modern Approaches To A Prehistoric Puzzle. Animal species will be, and have been, threatened with extinction continuously through time. Understanding the possible role of people in these events and how climate change may have made some species more vulnerable to extinction than others is an important aspect of ongoing debate in our society. How these factors influenced the extinction process has implications for how we might manage our policies on land, conser ....First Australians, Last Megafauna? Modern Approaches To A Prehistoric Puzzle. Animal species will be, and have been, threatened with extinction continuously through time. Understanding the possible role of people in these events and how climate change may have made some species more vulnerable to extinction than others is an important aspect of ongoing debate in our society. How these factors influenced the extinction process has implications for how we might manage our policies on land, conservation, biodiversity, and 'at-risk' animal species. Additionally, the involvement of indigenous communities provides important employment and cultural exchange opportunities.Read moreRead less
MILLENIAL-SCALE INSTABILITY OF SEA LEVEL AND THE CLIMATE SYSTEM: NEW ANALYSIS OF CORAL TERRACES IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA. Northern hemisphere climates switched repeatedly and abruptly between cold and warm states during the ice ages. This unexplained finding poses uncertainties about future climate. The exact chronology of past sea level and climatic changes is a key to the problem: this project aims to establish precise chronology through re-analysis of coral terraces at Huon Peninsula, PNG. New U-s ....MILLENIAL-SCALE INSTABILITY OF SEA LEVEL AND THE CLIMATE SYSTEM: NEW ANALYSIS OF CORAL TERRACES IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA. Northern hemisphere climates switched repeatedly and abruptly between cold and warm states during the ice ages. This unexplained finding poses uncertainties about future climate. The exact chronology of past sea level and climatic changes is a key to the problem: this project aims to establish precise chronology through re-analysis of coral terraces at Huon Peninsula, PNG. New U-series dating methods will give an accurately-timed record of sea level changes, which will be tightly locked to marine-sediment records of climatic change, by using sharp changes in atmospheric radiocarbon as universal marker horizons.Read moreRead less
A palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of Holocene coastal valley evolution in NSW: A magnetic, geochemical, sedimentological and microfossil investigation. Coastal environments are a critical interface between land and ocean. They are sensitive to sea level change and they can influence climate because they trap a large fraction of the carbon buried annually in the oceans. We propose an inter-disciplinary investigation to determine how NSW coastal environments responded to past climate change. Th ....A palaeoenvironmental reconstruction of Holocene coastal valley evolution in NSW: A magnetic, geochemical, sedimentological and microfossil investigation. Coastal environments are a critical interface between land and ocean. They are sensitive to sea level change and they can influence climate because they trap a large fraction of the carbon buried annually in the oceans. We propose an inter-disciplinary investigation to determine how NSW coastal environments responded to past climate change. This will help to understand factors such as flood chronologies and acid sulphate soil potential and to predict the response to these environments to future climate change. Coastal environments support an increasing global population that will benefit from a better understanding of processes and responses within this critical zone.Read moreRead less
Human responses to long term landscape and climate change in the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area. A multi-disciplinary research endeavour that includes the Traditional Tribal Groups from the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area will investigate the impact of past global climate change on a fragile, semi-arid ecosystem in the continent's southeast. It will document the strategies that Indigenous Australians employed to accommodate large-scale changes in landscape and environment. This work wil ....Human responses to long term landscape and climate change in the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area. A multi-disciplinary research endeavour that includes the Traditional Tribal Groups from the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area will investigate the impact of past global climate change on a fragile, semi-arid ecosystem in the continent's southeast. It will document the strategies that Indigenous Australians employed to accommodate large-scale changes in landscape and environment. This work will result in the first integrated account of human and landscape history for an area that has attracted international attention since it was inscribed on the World Heritage register in 1981.Read moreRead less
Environmental Evolution of the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area. The Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area ranks as the most significant area for documenting Australia TMs unique cultural and environmental history. Parts of this remarkable archive are being lost through erosion. This project is the basis for a strategic research alliance between the custodians and managers of the area and leading Australian research institutions to build a picture of the continent TMs human and environmental hi ....Environmental Evolution of the Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area. The Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area ranks as the most significant area for documenting Australia TMs unique cultural and environmental history. Parts of this remarkable archive are being lost through erosion. This project is the basis for a strategic research alliance between the custodians and managers of the area and leading Australian research institutions to build a picture of the continent TMs human and environmental history before this evidence is irretrievably lost. Lake Mungo is known to Australians as the site of the world TMs earliest cremation and a window into our remote past. We will provide novel insights into the evolution of the Australian landscape, its fragile environment and the history of its resilient inhabitants.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100141
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$420,000.00
Summary
High-resolution ITRAX XRF core scanning facility for global change research. This facility will enable researchers to obtain high-resolution geochemical profiles in the study of environmental change and climate variability. It will provide archive data on the variation of density and chemical element composition along sediment and soil cores, rock cores, wood samples, speleothems and corals. These archives contain important information such as human activity, climate variability, water quality c ....High-resolution ITRAX XRF core scanning facility for global change research. This facility will enable researchers to obtain high-resolution geochemical profiles in the study of environmental change and climate variability. It will provide archive data on the variation of density and chemical element composition along sediment and soil cores, rock cores, wood samples, speleothems and corals. These archives contain important information such as human activity, climate variability, water quality changes, pollution histories, recent geomorphological change, land-use change, introduction of invasive species and the occurrence of bushfires. A better understanding of the occurrence and timing of these major environmental issues is of national and regional importance.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100094
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$110,000.00
Summary
Single-grain optically-stimulated luminescence and dosimetry instruments to service the Sydney metropolitan and greater New South Wales region. This equipment will support projects that address significant environmental challenges in Australia, such as climate change and variability, coastal management and sustainable river and water management, and that assess the impacts and consequences of these challenges for populations living in environmentally sensitive areas. These projects will build on ....Single-grain optically-stimulated luminescence and dosimetry instruments to service the Sydney metropolitan and greater New South Wales region. This equipment will support projects that address significant environmental challenges in Australia, such as climate change and variability, coastal management and sustainable river and water management, and that assess the impacts and consequences of these challenges for populations living in environmentally sensitive areas. These projects will build on established collaborations in Australia, Antarctica and the south-west Pacific and encourage new collaborations with south-east Asian, Egyptian and Argentinean researchers, which will promote Australian research on a world stage. The use of this equipment will also pioneer new dating methodologies to further enhance Australia's place at the forefront of geochronology.Read moreRead less