Buckhorn Mountain Tree Ring Chronology for Paleoclimate Study

Tree ring data from Buckhorn Mountain, South Dakota, provides a 391-year chronology from 350 to -41 calendar years before present. The dataset is archived by NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information under the World Data Service for Paleoclimatology. It was last updated in the repository in 1991.

Use Cases

• Reconstruct past temperature or precipitation anomalies by analyzing annual tree-ring width variations.
• Calibrate climate models using a precisely dated proxy record spanning several centuries.
• Study the growth response of Ponderosa Pine (PIPO) to historical environmental stressors in the Black Hills region.

Strengths

• Covers a 391-year time period (350 to -41 BP), providing a multi-century climate record.
• Data is curated and archived by the authoritative NOAA NCEI World Data Service for Paleoclimatology.

Limitations

• Temporal coverage ends at 41 BC (1991 years before 1950), with no modern data for recent climate comparison.
• Geographic scope is limited to a single site (Buckhorn Mountain, South Dakota), reducing regional representativeness.
• Data recency is low, with a last repository update in 1991, potentially indicating outdated metadata or formats.

Provenance

Source

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

Collection Method

Tree ring analysis (dendrochronology) of Ponderosa Pine (PIPO) samples.

Time Range

350 to -41 calendar years before present (BP).

Freshness

Last updated in repository on 1991-01-01.

Geography

Buckhorn Mountain, South Dakota, United States Of America.