500,000-Year Paleotemperature Record from Devils Hole Calcite Core

A 500,000-year continuous record of paleotemperature and climatic proxies derived from a 36-cm core of vein calcite from Devils Hole, Nevada. The dataset contains 284 samples with stable isotopic ratios of carbon and oxygen, analyzed by the U.S. Geological Survey. Age estimates are based on 21 uranium-series dating control points.

Use Cases

• Reconstructing past temperature variations by analyzing the delta 18O values from 284 calcite samples.
• Calibrating ice core chronologies, such as the Vostok record, using the uranium-series age estimates for core intervals.
• Investigating the timing and duration of Pleistocene interglaciations by correlating delta 13C and age data across the 500,000-year sequence.
• Assessing groundwater age in regional aquifers by using the isotopic record as a paleohydrological tracer.

Strengths

• 284 precisely measured samples for delta 13C and delta 18O isotopes.
• 500,000-year continuous temporal coverage from a single core.
• Age control from 21 uranium-series (TIMS) dating points with reported analytical errors.

Limitations

• Sample count is limited to 284 data points for the entire 500,000-year period.
• Age estimates rely on linear interpolation between control points, introducing uncertainty in unconstrained intervals.
• Geographic scope is restricted to a single location (Devils Hole, Nevada).

Provenance

Source

U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Open-File Report 97-792 and related publications.

Collection Method

Stable isotope ratio mass spectrometry on calcite samples; ages from thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) uranium-series dating.

Time Range

Approximately 500,000 years before present.

Geography

Devils Hole, a subaqueous cavern in south-central Nevada, USA.