Дисертації з теми "Proxy paleoenvironmental"

The long-term climatic and environmental history of Southeast Asia is still fragmentary. This thesis therefore aims at studying lake sediment/peat sequences using a multi-proxy approach to reconstruct the environmental history and the impact of past changes in monsoon variability and intensity on lake ecosystems in Thailand. The study focuses on two lakes located in northeast Thailand: the larger Lake Kumphawapi and the smaller Lake Pa Kho. The comparison of multiple sediment sequences and their proxies from Kumphawapi suggests a strengthening of the summer monsoon between c. 10,000 and 7000 cal yr BP. Parts of the lake had been transformed into a wetland/peatland by c. 7000 cal yr BP, while the deeper part of the basin still contained areas of shallow water until c. 6600 cal yr BP. This gradual lowering of the lake level can point to a weakening of the summer monsoon. Paleoenvironmental information for the time interval between 6200 and 1800 cal yr BP is limited due to a several thousand-year long hiatus. This new investigation demonstrates that arguments using the phytolith and pollen record of Lake Kumphawapi to support claims of early rice agriculture in the region or an early start of the Bronze Age are not valid, because these were based upon the assumption of continuous deposition. The lithostratigraphy and multi-proxy reconstructions for Pa Kho support a strengthened summer monsoon between 2120-1580 cal yr BP, 1150-980 cal yr BP, and after 500 cal yr BP; and a weakening of the summer monsoon between 1580-1150 cal yr BP and between 650-500 cal yr BP. The increase in run-off and higher nutrient supply after AD 1700 can be linked to agricultural intensification in the region. Conclusively, the Holocene records from northeast Thailand add important paleoclimatic information for Southeast Asia and allow discussing past monsoon variability and movements of the Intertropical Convergence Zone in greater detail.

At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 3: Manuscript. Paper 4: Accepted. Paper 5: Manuscript.

Stone circles are among the most common and understudied archaeological features in the Rocky Mountains and High Plains. Their widespread availability coupled with increased archaeological research accompanying oil and natural gas exploration in the region has expanded the availability and size of the region’s radiocarbon database. The dates as data approach uses radiocarbon ages as variables from a larger sample. This thesis compiles radiocarbon ages associated with tipi ring sites in Wyoming and Montana and creates a summed probability distribution from these ages to serve as a proxy for prehistoric mobility. The distribution is corrected for taphonomic bias, or data loss, and compared to two paleoenvironmental proxies from northwestern Wyoming lakes to determine whether prehistoric mobility meets the expectations of the patch choice model. Running correlation windows provide statistical comparisons between datasets. Although a weak statistical relationship is apparent between mobility and the paleoenvironmental reconstructions over the 5000-year study period, no statistically significant correlations were identified at 150-or 200-year scales. Moderate strength correlations between the environmental data and mobility proxy when mobility is lagged suggest a delayed relationship between the datasets. Future research must include expanding the radiocarbon database and obtaining finer-scale paleoenvironmental reconstructions.

Deuterium ratios (δD) of hydrated volcanic glass have been used to reconstruct paleoenvironments, although the reliability and proper sample preparation protocol have been debated. In this study, hydrated volcanic ash samples from the lee of the Cascades were prepared using two separate methods. Method 1 involves sonicating and rinsing samples with hydrochloric acid (HCl) followed by hand-selection of glass shards (125-212µm). Method 2 requires hydrochloric acid (HCl) and hydrofluoric acid (HF) abrasion as well as heavy liquid separation of shards (70-150µm). Method 2 produced more consistent results with decreased intra-replicate variability in both water content (-0.92 wt. %) and deuterium values (-2.5‰ δD). Method 2 δD values of ≥99% isotropic glass were also 2.5-10 % more negative relative to Method 1 values, with an increasing discrepancy with age (3.68-32.66 Ma). Method 2 results suggest volcanic glass did not re-equilibrate with modern water, based on 1) < 2‰ discrepancies between samples of the same ash flow taken from unique sample localities and 2) a ~20‰ difference between samples of different ages (~8 Ma apart) from the same locality. These results support the specified use of HF abrasion and heavy liquid separation on 70-150 µm glass shards to minimize the impact of contaminants on reconstructed paleowater δD values.

Paleoenvironmental records provide ample information on the Late Quaternary climatic evolution. Due to the great diversity of continental mid-latitude environments the synthetic picture of the past mid-latitudinal climate changes is, however, far from being complete. Owing to its significant size and landlocked setting the Black Sea constitutes a perfect location to study patterns and mechanisms of climate change along the continental interior of Central and Eastern Europe and Asia Minor. Presently, the southern drainage area of the Black Sea is characterized by a Mediterranean-type climate while the northern drainage is under the influence of Central and Northern European climate. During the Last Glacial a decrease in the global sea level disconnected the Black Sea from the Mediterranean Sea transforming it into a giant closed lake. At that time atmospheric precipitation and related with it river run-off were the most important factors driving sediment supply and water chemistry of the Black ‘Lake’. Therefore studying properties of the Black Sea sediments provides important information on the interactions and development of the Mediterranean and Central and North European climate in the past. One significant outcome of my thesis is an improved chronostraphigraphical framework for the glacial lacustrine unit of the Black Sea sediment cores, which allowed to refine the environmental history of the Black Sea region and enabled a reliable correlation with data from other marine and terrestrial archives. Data gathered along a N-S transect presented on a common time scale revealed coherent changes in the basin and its surrounding. During the glacial, the southward-shifted Polar Front reduced moisture transport to the northern drainage of the Black Sea and let the southern drainage become dominant in freshwater and sediment supply into the basin. Changes in NW Anatolian precipitation reconstructed from the variability of the terrigenous input imply that during the glacial the regional rainfall variability was strongly influenced by Mediterranean sea surface temperatures and decreased in response to the cooling associated with the North Atlantic Heinrich Events H1 and H2. In contrast to regional precipitation changes, the hydrological properties of the Black Sea remained relatively stable under full glacial conditions. First significant modification in the freshwater/sediment sources reconstructed from changes in the sediment composition, lithology, and 18O of ostracods took place at around 16.4 cal ka BP, simultaneous to the early deglacial northward retreat of the oceanic and atmospheric polar fronts. Meltwater pulses, most probably derived from the disintegrating European ice sheets, changed the isotopic composition of the Black Sea and increased the supply from northern sediment sources. While these changes signalized a mitigation of the Northern European and Mediterranean climate, a decisive increase in local temperature was indicated only later at the transition from the Oldest Dryas to the Bølling around 14.6 cal ka BP. At that time the warming of the Black Sea surface initiated massive phytoplankton blooms, which in turn, induced the precipitation of inorganic carbonates. This biologically triggered process significantly changed the water chemistry and was recorded by simultaneous shifts in the elemental composition of ostracod shells and in the isotopic composition of the inorganically-precipitated carbonates. Starting with the B/A warming and continuing through the YD cold interval and the Early Holocene warming, the Black Sea temperature signal corresponds to the precipitation and temperature changes recorded in the wider Mediterranean region. Early Holocene conditions, similar to those of the Bølling/Allerød, were punctured by the marine inflow from the Mediterranean at ~ 9.3 cal ka BP, which terminated the lacustrine phase of the Black Sea and had a substantial impact on the chemical and physical properties of its water.
Aus Paläoumweltdaten lassen sich detaillierte Informationen über die spätquartäre Klimaentwicklung gewinnen. Für die kontinentalen mittleren Breiten ist das Gesamtbild der Klimaänderungen während dieses Zeitraumes aufgrund seiner Vielfältigkeit allerdings noch immer unvollständig. Eine ideale Loka-tion, das Muster und die Mechanismen der Klimaänderungen in Osteuropa und Kleinasien zu untersu-chen, ist das Schwarze Meer mit seiner bedeutenden Größe und seiner kontinentalen Lage. Gegenwärtig ist das südliche Einzugsgebiet des Schwarzen Meeres durch ein mediterranes Klima ge-prägt, während die nördlichen Regionen von zentral- bzw. nordeuropäischem Klima beeinflusst werden. Als im letzten Glazial der Meeresspiegel so stark sank, dass das Schwarze Meer vom Mittelmeer abge-trennt und zu einem großen, abflusslosen See wurde, waren der atmosphärische Niederschlag und der damit verbundene Abfluss die wesentlichen Steuerfaktoren für Sedimenteintrag und Wasserchemie des Schwarzen „Sees“. Deshalb liefert die Untersuchung der Sedimente des Schwarzen Meeres wichtige Informationen über die früheren Zusammenhänge sowie die Entwicklung von mediterranem und zentral- bzw. nordeuropäischem Klima. Das bedeutsamste Ergebnis meiner Doktorarbeit ist ein verbessertes Altersmodell für Sedimentkerne aus dem westlichen Schwarzen Meer; dieses erlaubt eine genauere Rekonstruktion der Entwicklungsge-schichte dieses Binnenmeeres und seiner Umgebung und ermöglicht einen fundierten Vergleich mit an-deren marinen und terrestrischen Archiven. Daten, die entlang eines N-S Transektes im westlichen Be-reich des Schwarzen Meeres erfasst wurden und auf einer gemeinsamen Zeitskala dargestellt werden, lassen die folgenden zusammenhängenden Entwicklungen im Becken und seiner Umgebung erkennen: Während des Glazials war der Feuchtigkeitstransport zum nördlichen Einzugsgebiet des Schwarzen Meeres aufgrund der südwärts verlagerten Polarfront vermindert, so dass Süßwasser und Sedimente vor-rangig aus dem südlichen Einzugsgebiet in das Becken gelangten. Die Rekonstruktion von Nieder-schlagsänderungen mit Hilfe von Schwankungen des terrigenen Eintrags zeigt, dass der regionale Nie-derschlag im Glazial stark von den Wasseroberflächentemperaturen des Mittelmeeres beeinflusst wurde und als Folge der Abkühlung während der nordatlantischen Heinrich-Ereignisse H1 und H2 abnahm. Im Gegensatz dazu blieb das Schwarze Meer während des Hochglazials hydrologisch relativ stabil. Die Sedimentzusammensetzung, Lithologie und δ18O-Werte von Ostracoden zeigen, dass erste signifi-kante Änderungen im Frischwasser- und Sedimenteintrag zeitgleich mit dem frühglazialen nordwärtigen Rückzug der ozeanischen und atmosphärischen Polarfronten um 16.4 cal ka BP auftraten. Der Schmelz-wassereintrag abschmelzender europäischer Eisflächen veränderte die Isotopenzusammensetzung des Wassers und erhöhte die Sedimentzufuhr aus den nördlichen Quellen. Während diese Änderungen auf ein bereits milderes Klima in Nordeuropa und im Mittelmeerraum hin-deuten, zeigt sich ein Anstieg der lokalen Temperaturen erst während des Übergangs von der Älteren Dryas zum Bølling/Allerød um etwa 14.6 cal. ka BP. Zu diesem Zeitpunkt führte ein wahrscheinlicher Anstieg der Wasseroberflächentemperaturen im Schwarzen Meer zu einem massiven Phytoplankton-wachstum, welcher die Ausfällung anorganischen Karbonats zur Folge hatte. Dieser biologisch ausgelös-te Prozess veränderte maßgeblich die Wasserchemie und spiegelt sich in simultanen Veränderungen der Elementzusammensetzung von Ostracoden und der Isotopenzusammensetzung von anorganisch ausge-fälltem Karbonat wieder. Beginnend mit dem Bølling/Allerød, durch die Jüngere Dryas Kälteperiode und die frühholozäne Erwärmung hindurch, deckt sich das Temperatursignal des Schwarzen Meeres mit den Niederschlags- und Temperaturänderungen des weiteren Mittelmeerraumes. Das Frühholozän war, ähnlich wie das Bølling/Allerød, durch das Einströmen salzhaltigen Meerwassers aus dem Mittelmeer gekennzeichnet (~9.5 cal. ka BP), welches die lakustrine Phase des Schwarzen Mee-res beendete und einen erheblichen Einfluss auf seine chemischen und physikalischen Wassereigen-schaften ausübte.

Les éléments traces, malgré leur rareté (moins de 100 parties par million) sur Terre, remplissent diverses fonctions : certains agissent comme des micronutriments, tandis que d'autres, appelés métaux critiques, possèdent des applications industrielles et médicales uniques. Dans les systèmes aquatiques naturels dépourvus d'oxygène, les transferts d'électrons impliquent des réactions biogéochimiques catalysées par le fer, le soufre et les éléments traces. Comprendre leur réactivité dans ces environnements reste un défi. Ma recherche de doctorat se concentre sur combler cette lacune de connaissance concernant trois éléments spécifiques (rhénium (Re), sélénium (Se) et gadolinium (Gd)). Ils existent sous diverses formes chimiques aqueuses dans l'eau : anion monovalent (perrhénate, ReO4—), anion divalent (sélénate, SeO42— et sélénite, SeO32—) ou cation (gadolinium, Gd3+). Le rhénium est un métal critique, tandis que le sélénium est un élément bioessentiel à faibles niveaux et devient toxique à des concentrations plus élevées. Le gadolinium est un élément des terres rares et un métal critique également, en raison de son utilisation étendue comme agent de contraste dans l'imagerie par résonance magnétique (IRM).Ces éléments sont les plus concentrés dans les sédiments marins formés dans des environnements dépourvus d'oxygène. Les phases minérales courantes comprennent la pyrite (FeS2) et la magnétite (Fe3O4), selon la teneur en sulfure dans ces environnements et l'origine (autogène vs détritique, par exemple, à partir de roches volcaniques) des particules. Ma recherche, présentée sur quatre chapitres, étudie les processus de réduction de surface (Re(VII), Se(VI) et Se(IV)) et la sorption (Gd(III)) sur/dans les particules de magnétite et de pyrite. En utilisant diverses méthodes analytiques telles que la spectroscopie XAFS, la spectroscopie STEM-EELS et le MC-ICP-MS, notre étude révèle des voies réactives distinctes. Re(VII) réagit avec l'eau sulfurée pour former des nanoparticules de Re(III, IV, V)2S7, tandis qu'à des concentrations plus faibles, le Re est réduit et incorporé dans les particules, selon des voies caractérisées par une fraction isotopique moindre avec la pyrite qu'avec la magnétite. Nous montrons également que les nanoparticules de pyrite réduisent le Se(VI) et le Se(IV), jusqu'à obtenir du Se(0) en surface ou du Se(-I) en structure, selon que l'adsorption ou la co-précipitation se produit. Enfin, le Gd se substitue au Fe(III) dans les nanoparticules de magnétite jusqu'à une substitution de 5% de Fe par Gd. Nous tentons d'unifier le comportement d'affinité de ces éléments traces et d'autres avec les sédiments riches en Fe anoxiques à la lumière du principe des acides et des bases durs et mous.L'étude apporte de nouvelles perspectives sur les mécanismes qui régissent la séquestration des métaux et métalloïdes dans les environnements sédimentaires. La signification de cette recherche réside dans sa pertinence pour les entreprises scientifiques et technologiques contemporaines, en particulier pour comprendre comment les processus dans les systèmes riches en Fe et en sulfures fonctionnent, tels que les éléments traces, la mobilité du Fe et du S, l'équilibre des masses dans les cycles sédimentaires mondiaux, jusqu'à l'exploration, l'exploitation minière et le recyclage des gisements potentiels de métaux. De plus, elle améliore notre compréhension actuelle de l'utilisation des proxies paléoenvironnementaux pour reconstruire la formation de la Terre. Enfin, cette étude a également des implications pour le traitement des déchets nucléaires et de la pollution, en particulier dans la gestion de la contamination par le sélénium (Se) et le gadolinium (Gd)
Trace elements, despite their scarcity (less than 100 parts per million) on Earth, serve diverse purposes: some act as micronutrients, while others, known as critical metals, possess unique industrial and medical applications. In oxygen-deprived natural aquatic systems electron transfers involve biogeochemical reactions catalyzed by iron, sulfur and trace elements. Understanding their reactivity in these environments remains a challenge. My Ph.D. research focus on filling this knowledge gap concerning three specific elements (rhenium (Re), selenium (Se), and gadolinium (Gd)). They exist in various chemical aqueous species in water: monovalent anion (perrhenate, ReO4—), divalent anion (selenate, SeO42—and selenite, SeO32—) or cation (Gadolinium, Gd3+). Rhenium is a critical metal, while selenium is a bioessential element at low levels, and becomes toxic in higher concentrations. Gadolinium is a rare earth element and a critical metal as well, due to its wide use as a contrast agent in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).These elements are most concentrated in marine sediments formed in oxygen-deprived environments. Common mineral phases include pyrite (FeS2) and magnetite (Fe3O4) depending on sulfide content in those environments, and origin (autogenic vs. detritic, e.g., from volcanic rocks) of the particles. My research, presented across four chapters, investigates surface reduction (Re(VII), Se(VI) and Se(IV)) and the sorption (Gd(III)) processes on/into magnetite and pyrite particles. Employing various analytical methods such as XAFS spectroscopy, STEM-EELS spectro microscopie and MC-ICP-MS, our study reveals distinct reactive pathways. Re(VII) reacts with sulfidic water to form Re(III, IV, V)2S7 nanoparticles, while at lower concentrations Re is reduced and incorporated into particles, in different pathways characterized by less isotopic fractionation with pyrite than with magnetite. We also show that pyrite nanoparticles reduce Se(VI) and Se(IV), down to surface Se(0) or structure Se(-I) depending on whether adsorption or co-precipitation occurs. Lastly, Gd substitutes for Fe(III) in magnetite nanoparticles up to 5% Fe substitution by Gd. We attempt to unify the affinity behaviour of these and other trace elements with anoxic Fe-bearing sediments in the light of the hard and soft acids and bases principle.The study provides new insights into the mechanisms that govern the sequestration of metals and metalloids in sedimentary settings. The significance of this research lies in its relevance to contemporary scientific and technological endeavours, particularly in understanding how processes in Fe and sulfidic systems work like trace elements, Fe and S mobility, mass balance in the global sedimentary cycles to the exploration, mining and recycling of potential repositories of metals. Furthermore, it enhances our current understanding of the use of palaeoenvironmental proxies to reconstruct the Earth's formation. Finally, this study also has implications for the treatment of nuclear waste and pollution, particularly in the management of selenium (Se) and gadolinium (Gd) contamination

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Phytoliths are microscopic particles of silica, or biomineralizations, formed during the growth of the plant, through the absorption of dissolved monosilicic acid (H4SiO4) solute from the soil. Phytoliths remain preserved in soil under certain environmental conditions making them a great ally in paleoenvironmental reconstruction studies. In South-West Paraná and North-West Santa Catarina, where there were large areas of Araucaria moist forests (AMF), the Genesis and Evolution of Geomorphological Surfaces and Surface Formations research group (GPGESGFS) has carried out dedicated research using diverse biological proxies, including phytoliths, in order to understand the principal factors and processes which were active in the formation of the current relief and in the evolution of the landscape of this region. Considering the hypothesis of environmental changes (climate and vegetation) in the South of Brazil during the Pleistocene/Holocene, the present study has as its main objective understanding the environmental dynamic during the Late Pleistocene and Holocene, which may have acted on the evolution of the landscape of Campo Erê (SC), incomplete planation surface VI. The results obtained through routine physical and chemical analyses of the phytolith assemblage, the ratios of the stable carbon isotopes and 14C dating of the humin fraction, have enabled us to conclude that the soil studied in Campo Erê (SC), a typical distroferric red nitosol with humic A horizon, developed in situ through pedogenic evolution from the material of origin, basalt. Since the middle of the last glacial maximum (18.060-17.845 Years Cal. BP.) this profile developed beneath vegetation, possibly less leafy than the current vegetation, with a mixture of C3 (grasses, trees and bushes) and C4 (grasses) plants. This pattern of vegetation remained until the beginning of the Holocene (8.055-7.960 Years Cal. BP.) From the Middle Holocene on, there occurred an opening up of the vegetation, marked by greater participation of C4 grasses, possibly a campo sujo (a herbaceous layer with occasional small trees), shown as much by the isotopic signal as by the phytolith assemblage. This vegetation lasted until approximately 1.875-1.715 years Cal BP, once again becoming vegetation formed predominantly by C3 plant species of photosynthetic cycle, until the formation of the current AMF found in the study area. At no time were signs of dense tree formation detected, but instead leafy vegetation, which was at times more open and at others more closed. This characteristic is prominent in the vegetation of the south of Brazil, where extensive areas of AMF are surrounded by grasslands forming great mosaics on the landscape. All the climatic oscillations, however small, reflect the retreat or advance of this forest over grassland or vice-versa
Fitólitos são microscópicas partículas de sílica ou biomineralizações formadas devido à absorção do ácido monossílico (H4SiO4) dissolvido do soluto do solo durante o crescimento da planta. Os fitólitos ficam preservados no solo em determinadas condições ambientais tornando-se um grande aliado em estudos de reconstrução paleoambiental. No Sudoeste do Paraná e Noroeste de Santa Catarina, onde ocorriam grandes área de Floresta Ombrófila Mista (FOM), o Grupo de Pesquisa Gênese e Evolução de Superfícies Geomorfológicas e Formação Superficiais (GPGESGFS) tem se dedicado às pesquisas usando diversos proxies biológicos inclusive os fitólitos para compreender quais foram os principais fatores e processos que atuaram na formação do atual relevo e na evolução da paisagem nessa região. Considerando a hipótese de mudanças ambientais (clima e vegetação) no Sul do Brasil durante o Pleistoceno/Holoceno o presente estudo tem como objetivo principal compreender a dinâmica ambiental ao longo do Pleistoceno Tardio e Holoceno , que pode ter atuado na evolução da paisagem na região de Campo Erê (SC), superfície incompletamente aplainada VI. Os resultados obtidos através das análises físicas e químicas de rotina, de assembleia de fitólitos, as razões de isótopos estáveis de carbono e datações por 14C da fração humina, permitiram concluir que o solo estudado em Campo Erê (SC), um NITOSSOLO VERMELHO Distroférrico típico com horizonte A húmico, se desenvolveu in situ através de evolução pedogenética a partir do material de origem, o basalto. Desde meados do Ultimo Maximo Glacial (18.060-17.845 Anos Cal. AP.) este perfil se desenvolveu sob uma vegetação, possivelmente menos arborizada que a atual, com mistura de plantas C3 (gramíneas, árvores e arbustos) e C4 (gramíneas). Este padrão de vegetação se manteve até o inicio do Holoceno (8.055-7.960 Anos Cal. AP.). A partir do Holoceno médio ocorreu uma abertura da vegetação, marcada pela maior participação de gramíneas C4, possivelmente um campo sujo, evidenciada tanto pelo sinal isotópico, quanto pela assembleia fitolítica. Essa vegetação perdurou até aproximadamente 1.875-1.715 anos Cal AP, tornando-se novamente uma vegetação formada predominantemente por espécie de plantas de ciclo fotossintético C3 até a formação da atual FOM encontrada na área de estudo. Em nenhum momento detectou-se sinais de uma formação arbórea densa, mas sim uma vegetação arborizada que por vezes esteve mais aberta e por vezes mais fechada. Essa característica é eminente da vegetação do sul do Brasil onde extensas áreas de FOM são cercadas por campos formando grandes mosaicos na paisagem. Todas as oscilações climáticas, por menores que sejam, refletem o retrocesso ou o avanço dessa floresta sob o campo ou vice-versa.

碩士
國立臺灣大學
地質科學研究所
101
Characteristics of rare earth elements (REE) have been widely used as important tracers in earth sciences. Foraminiferal test REE signatures have been suggested to reflect ambient seawater conditions and serve as valuable proxies in paleoceanography and paleoclimatogy. Here I present a past 363 kyr planktonic foraminifer Globigerinoides ruber (G. ruber) REE record from sediment core MD05-2925 (9o20.61’S, 151o27.61’E, 1661 m water depth) collected from the Solomon Sea, Papua New Guinea (PNG). High significant correlation coefficients exist for all G. ruber REE/Ca time series. This foraminiferal REE/Ca time series is different from the Mg/Ca ratio-inferred sea surface temperatures and δ18O records. This inconsistency suggests that planktonic foraminiferal REE were not directly governed by changes in ice volume or thermal condition. Solomon Sea G. ruber REE/Ca time-series was dominated by 41-kyr obliquity and 23-kyr precession periodicities. An absence of significant relation of the G. ruber Mn/Ca and Fe/Ca versus Nd/Ca indicates that Fe-Mn oxides were completely removed after a clean procedure. The REE pattern diagram expresses two dominant sources of local water masses and the input from nearby terrestrial riverine discharge. PNG located at the southern border of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), delivers disproportionately large amount of suspended sediment fluxes to the adjacent oceans by seasonal precipitation. The nearby marine basins as receptacles of the transported terrestrial sediments can reflect past ITCZ precipitation. This regional G. ruber REE/Ca is an island-weathering signal modulated by rainfall, related to the different insolation gradients and regional insolation. In summary, Solomon Sea G. ruber REE content is considered to be a robust paleo-precipitation proxy over the PNG. This example opens a new potential of using foraminiferal REE records as a proxy of paleoclimatogy and paleoceanography.