Cosmogenic nuclide exposure ages and glacial history of late Quaternary Ross Sea drift in McMurdo Sound, Antarctica

Abstract

3He, 10Be and 26Al surface exposure ages were determined for rock samples from late Quaternary drift sheets deposited on the coast of McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, by the Ross Sea Ice Sheet. The youngest drift, previously believed to be Late Wisconsin in age, has exposure ages of 8–106 kyr (19 samples). These results suggest that the apparent ‘Late Wisconsin’ ice margin may represent a number of ice sheet advances during the last glacial period. 3He exposure ages from analogous, stratigraphically older drift range from 104 to 567 kyr (seven samples), and clearly distinguish the youngest drift from older deposits. Comparison of 10Be and 3He concentrations in Ross Sea Drift quartz samples indicates significant 3He loss in only one sample, suggesting that cosmogenic 3He is generally retained in young Antarctic quartz samples (exposure age < 100 kyr) of appropriate grain size. In two of the five quartz samples analyzed, significant excesses of 26Al relative to 10Be preclude meaningful 26Al exposure age calculations. These excesses may be due to nucleogenic 26Al produced as a byproduct of uranium and thorium decay.