Antarctic Shelf Sediment Cores with Radiocarbon Dates from the Holocene

Biosiliceous sediments from a submarine valley system on the East Antarctic Shelf contain intervals of ripple cross-lamination. Based on radiocarbon dates from one core, the most intensely cross-laminated sediments were deposited between 6,000 and 3,500 years before present. The dataset is provided by Geoscience Australia Data and was last updated on 2026-04-30.

Use Cases

• Analyze sedimentary structures like ripple cross-lamination to infer past bottom current activity.
• Correlate sediment deposition patterns with Holocene climate events based on radiocarbon dating.
• Model paleo-oceanographic conditions on the East Antarctic Shelf using sediment core evidence.

Strengths

• Includes radiocarbon dates providing a temporal framework for sediment layers.
• Focuses on a specific sedimentary feature (ripple cross-lamination) with identified deposition intervals.
• Data originates from Geoscience Australia Data, a national geological survey.

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

Geoscience Australia Data

Collection Method

Sediment cores collected from a submarine valley system on the Mac.Robertson Shelf, East Antarctica.

Time Range

Holocene, with a noted intense deposition period between 6,000 and 3,500 years before present.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-30 14:35:26.466999; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Continental shelf of East Antarctica, specifically the Mac.Robertson Shelf.