Kesang Cave, Western China 500KYr Speleothem d18O Data Cheng, H.; Zhang, P.Z.; Spötl, C.; Edwards, R.L.; Cai, Y.; Zhang, D.Z.; Sang, W.C.; Tan, M.; An, Z. Cheng, H. Zhang, P.Z. Spötl, C. Edwards, R.L. Cai, Y. Zhang, D.Z. Sang, W.C. Tan, M. An, Z. Monsoon earth science/paleoclimate/speleothems (delta 18O,calcium carbonate,null,per mil VPDB,null,speleothems,raw,isotope ratio mass spectrometry,N,null) earth science/paleoclimate/speleothems (age,null,null,calendar kiloyear before present,null,speleothems,null,null,N,null) earth science/paleoclimate/speleothems (Kesang Cave>LATITUDE 42.8667>LONGITUDE 81.75) Central Asia is currently a semiarid-arid region, dominated by the Westerlies. It is important to understand mechanisms of climate and precipitation changes here, as water availability in the region is crucial today and in the future. High-resolution, absolutely-dated oxygen isotope (d18O) records of stalagmites from Kesang Cave characterize a dynamic precipitation history over most of the past 500,000 years. This record demonstrates, for the first time, that climate change in the region exhibits a processional rhythm with abrupt inceptions of low d18O speleothem growth at times of high Northern Hemisphere summer insolation followed by gradual d18O increases that track decreases of insolation. These observations and interpretations contrast with the interpretation of nearby, but higher elevation ice core records. The absolutely-dated cave d18O shifts can be used to correlate the regional climate variability by providing chronological marks. Combined with other paleoclimate records, the Kesang observations suggest that possible incursions of Asian summer monsoon rainfall or related moisture into the Kesang site and/or adjacent areas during the high insolation times may play an important role in changing orbital-scale hydrology of the region. Based on our record, arid climate will prevail in this region for the next several millennia, providing that anthropogenic effects do not supersede natural processes. STUDY NOTES: High resolusion and absolutely dated oxygen isotope record from Kesang Cave, Tekesi County, Xinjiang, western China. NCDC-Paleoclimatology https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/data-access/paleoclimatology-data - Bauer Bruce Investigator : Cheng, H. Investigator : Zhang, P.Z. Investigator : Spötl, C. Investigator : Edwards, R.L. Investigator : Cai, Y. Investigator : Zhang, D.Z. Investigator : Sang, W.C. Investigator : Tan, M. Investigator : An, Z. 2012-01-18 ONLINE Files online, ASCII https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/study/12403 https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/asia/china/kesang2012.xls https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/asia/china/kesang2012.txt https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/asia/china/kesang2012.xls https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/asia/china/kesang2012.txt English https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/study/12403 https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/asia/china/kesang2012.xls https://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/data/paleo/speleothem/asia/china/kesang2012.txt Cheng, H., P.Z. Zhang, C. Spötl, R.L. Edwards, Y.J. Cai, D.Z. Zhang, W.C. Sang, M. Tan, and Z.S. An. 2012. The climatic cyclicity in semiarid-arid central Asia over the past 500,000 years. Geophys. Res. Lett., 39, L01705, doi:10.1029/2011GL050202. START YEAR: 499500 cal yr BP * END YEAR: 5 cal yr BP 81.75 42.8667 81.75 42.8667