Elk River Tree Ring Chronology from Kansas

Tree ring width measurements from the Elk River site in Kansas provide a climate proxy record spanning 258 years. The data covers the period from 226 to -32 calendar years before present, indicating it includes years both before and after the 1950 baseline. This archived paleoclimatology study is maintained by the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information.

Use Cases

• Reconstruct past precipitation or drought indices by analyzing the annual tree_ring_width series.
• Calibrate the chronology against known climate events using the calendar_years_bp time index.
• Compare the growth pattern from this Kansas site with other North American tree ring chronologies to identify regional climate signals.

Strengths

• 258-year temporal coverage from 226 to -32 calendar years BP.
• Data is curated and archived by the authoritative NOAA NCEI World Data Service for Paleoclimatology.

Limitations

• The dataset's last documented update was in 1982, making it a historical snapshot that may lack modern reanalysis.
• Specific sample depth, replication statistics, and measurement uncertainty metrics are not provided in the basic description.

Provenance

Source

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

Collection Method

Tree ring analysis (dendrochronology), measuring parameters like ring width.

Time Range

226 to -32 calendar years before present (BP).

Freshness

null

Geography

Elk River, Kansas, United States of America.