Mount Taylor Tree Ring Chronology for Paleoclimate Reconstruction

A 361-year tree ring chronology from Mount Taylor, New Mexico, spanning from 339 to -22 calendar years before present. The dataset is part of the NOAA/WDS Paleoclimatology archive, specifically the International Tree-Ring Data Bank (ITRDB). It was contributed by Dean and archived by NOAA NCEI, with a last update recorded in 1972.

Use Cases

• Reconstruct past temperature or precipitation anomalies by analyzing annual ring-width variations.
• Calibrate and validate climate models using the 361-year proxy record of environmental conditions.
• Study the response of high-elevation conifer species to climatic stressors over multiple centuries.
• Establish regional dendrochronological cross-dating sequences using the ITRDB-standardized chronology.

Strengths

• Covers a 361-year time period, providing a multi-century paleoclimate record.
• Part of the authoritative NOAA/WDS Paleoclimatology and ITRDB archives, ensuring standardized formatting.

Limitations

• Temporal coverage ends at -22 BP (1972 CE), making the record potentially stale for recent climate studies.
• Geographic scope is limited to a single site (Mount Taylor, New Mexico), limiting regional generalizability.
• The last update was in 1972, indicating the dataset may not reflect modern methodological improvements.

Provenance

Source

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), World Data Service for Paleoclimatology.

Collection Method

Tree ring data (dendrochronology) collected and standardized for the International Tree-Ring Data Bank (ITRDB).

Time Range

339 to -22 calendar years before present (BP).

Freshness

null

Geography

Mount Taylor, New Mexico, United States of America.