Unearthing the climate history of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile – deep drilling in two clay pans of the Coastal Cordillera
<p>The Atacama Desert is one of the driest deserts on Earth, with a predominantly hyperarid climate since at least the Miocene. Geological evidence, however, indicates that this overall hyperaridity was repeatedly interrupted by wetter periods. Deep-time precipitation reconstructions of the At...
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Copernicus Publications
2025-07-01
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| Series: | Scientific Drilling |
| Online Access: | https://sd.copernicus.org/articles/34/1/2025/sd-34-1-2025.pdf |
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| author | V. Wennrich J. Diederich-Leicher B. N. Blanco-Arrué B. N. Blanco-Arrué C. Büttner S. Buske E. Campos Sepulveda T. Dunai J. Feller E. Galego A. Hasberg N. Leicher D. A. López J. Maldonado A. Medialdea A. Medialdea L. Ninnemann L. Ninnemann R. Perryman J. C. Ríos-Contesse B. Ritter S. Scheidt B. Vargas-Machuca P. Yogeshwar P. Yogeshwar M. Melles |
| author_facet | V. Wennrich J. Diederich-Leicher B. N. Blanco-Arrué B. N. Blanco-Arrué C. Büttner S. Buske E. Campos Sepulveda T. Dunai J. Feller E. Galego A. Hasberg N. Leicher D. A. López J. Maldonado A. Medialdea A. Medialdea L. Ninnemann L. Ninnemann R. Perryman J. C. Ríos-Contesse B. Ritter S. Scheidt B. Vargas-Machuca P. Yogeshwar P. Yogeshwar M. Melles |
| author_sort | V. Wennrich |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <p>The Atacama Desert is one of the driest deserts on Earth, with a predominantly hyperarid climate since at least the Miocene. Geological evidence, however, indicates that this overall hyperaridity was repeatedly interrupted by wetter periods. Deep-time precipitation reconstructions of the Atacama Desert are limited by scarce and discontinuous sediment sequences, most of which received moisture from wetter regions outside the Atacama Desert. Longer archives of the precipitation history in the desert interior during the Neogene are unfortunately extremely rare.</p>
<p>The sediment records of two tectonically blocked endorheic basins (also known as clay pans) in the Coastal Cordillera of northern Chile may fill the gaps in the paleo-precipitation record of the Atacama Desert. Comprehensive investigations of both clay pans applied intensive geological and geophysical site surveys and deep-drilling operations with subsequent downhole logging. Short pilot cores of up to 6.2 m in length already showed highly variable sediment successions reflecting strong hydroclimatic fluctuations on glacial–interglacial timescales. Electromagnetic and seismic surveys yielded a three-layer structure in both basins consisting of the resistive basement overlain by a low-resistivity basal and a high-resistivity upper sediment unit with total sediment thicknesses of more than <span class="inline-formula">∼</span> 100 and <span class="inline-formula">∼</span> 160 m in the Playa Adamito Grande (PAG) and Paranal clay pans, respectively. Assuming similar sedimentation rates to those of the pilot cores, this would imply that the sediment records of both clay pans span several million years.</p>
<p>Lithological data and downhole-logging results of the deep-drilling operations reveal strong heterogeneities in the sediment composition that presumably can be traced back to major climatic and/or tectonic shifts in the catchments of the clay pans. Whereas the fine-grained sediments at the base of the PAG sequence suggest longer-lasting lacustrine sedimentation with enhanced evaporative episodes, the lower sediment unit in the core from the Paranal clay pan consists of fluvial conglomerates and sandstones. Both lacustrine and fluvial sediments indicate<span id="page2"/> less arid conditions in the central Atacama Desert than today. Separated by distinct lithological boundaries, the upper sediments in both clay pans show several similar sediment facies typical of alluvial-fan deposition, e.g., proximal mudflows and debris flows, sheetflood, and distal alluvial sediment flows, but also pedogenic calcium sulfates. The shift to a predominant alluvial-fan deposition, which is common after torrential rainfall in the Atacama Desert today, implies a general modification of the environmental conditions of the study areas.</p>
<p>These initial results already highlight the potential of the sediment records from the PAG and Paranal clay pans to provide unprecedented information on the Neogene precipitation history in the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert.</p> |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-d31ada654ef9469bbaff77c4a8374a5d |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1816-8957 1816-3459 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | Copernicus Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Drilling |
| spelling | doaj-art-d31ada654ef9469bbaff77c4a8374a5d2025-08-20T02:40:30ZengCopernicus PublicationsScientific Drilling1816-89571816-34592025-07-013412010.5194/sd-34-1-2025Unearthing the climate history of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile – deep drilling in two clay pans of the Coastal CordilleraV. Wennrich0J. Diederich-Leicher1B. N. Blanco-Arrué2B. N. Blanco-Arrué3C. Büttner4S. Buske5E. Campos Sepulveda6T. Dunai7J. Feller8E. Galego9A. Hasberg10N. Leicher11D. A. López12J. Maldonado13A. Medialdea14A. Medialdea15L. Ninnemann16L. Ninnemann17R. Perryman18J. C. Ríos-Contesse19B. Ritter20S. Scheidt21B. Vargas-Machuca22P. Yogeshwar23P. Yogeshwar24M. Melles25Institute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanyInstitute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanyInstitute of Geophysics and Meteorology, University of Cologne, 50969 Cologne, Germanynow at: Leibniz Institute for Applied Geophysics, 30655 Hanover, GermanyInstitute of Geophysics and Geoinformatics, TU Bergakademie Freiberg, 09596 Freiberg, GermanyInstitute of Geophysics and Geoinformatics, TU Bergakademie Freiberg, 09596 Freiberg, GermanyDepartment of Geological Sciences, Universidad Católica del Norte, Antofagasta, ChileInstitute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanyInstitute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanyInstitute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanyInstitute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanyInstitute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanyInstitute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanySuperex S.A. Diamond and Sonic Drilling Group, Santiago, ChileGeographical Institute, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanyNational Research Centre on Human Evolution (CENIEH), 09002 Burgos, SpainInstitute of Geophysics and Geoinformatics, TU Bergakademie Freiberg, 09596 Freiberg, Germanynow at: Center for Interdisciplinary Digital Sciences (CIDS), TUD Dresden University of Technology, 01069 Dresden, GermanyComprobe, Borehole Imaging and Orientation Services, Santiago, ChileDepartment of Geological Sciences, Universidad Católica del Norte, Antofagasta, ChileInstitute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanyInstitute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanyInstitute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, GermanyInstitute of Geophysics and Meteorology, University of Cologne, 50969 Cologne, Germanynow at: Leibniz Institute for Applied Geophysics, 30655 Hanover, GermanyInstitute of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, Germany<p>The Atacama Desert is one of the driest deserts on Earth, with a predominantly hyperarid climate since at least the Miocene. Geological evidence, however, indicates that this overall hyperaridity was repeatedly interrupted by wetter periods. Deep-time precipitation reconstructions of the Atacama Desert are limited by scarce and discontinuous sediment sequences, most of which received moisture from wetter regions outside the Atacama Desert. Longer archives of the precipitation history in the desert interior during the Neogene are unfortunately extremely rare.</p> <p>The sediment records of two tectonically blocked endorheic basins (also known as clay pans) in the Coastal Cordillera of northern Chile may fill the gaps in the paleo-precipitation record of the Atacama Desert. Comprehensive investigations of both clay pans applied intensive geological and geophysical site surveys and deep-drilling operations with subsequent downhole logging. Short pilot cores of up to 6.2 m in length already showed highly variable sediment successions reflecting strong hydroclimatic fluctuations on glacial–interglacial timescales. Electromagnetic and seismic surveys yielded a three-layer structure in both basins consisting of the resistive basement overlain by a low-resistivity basal and a high-resistivity upper sediment unit with total sediment thicknesses of more than <span class="inline-formula">∼</span> 100 and <span class="inline-formula">∼</span> 160 m in the Playa Adamito Grande (PAG) and Paranal clay pans, respectively. Assuming similar sedimentation rates to those of the pilot cores, this would imply that the sediment records of both clay pans span several million years.</p> <p>Lithological data and downhole-logging results of the deep-drilling operations reveal strong heterogeneities in the sediment composition that presumably can be traced back to major climatic and/or tectonic shifts in the catchments of the clay pans. Whereas the fine-grained sediments at the base of the PAG sequence suggest longer-lasting lacustrine sedimentation with enhanced evaporative episodes, the lower sediment unit in the core from the Paranal clay pan consists of fluvial conglomerates and sandstones. Both lacustrine and fluvial sediments indicate<span id="page2"/> less arid conditions in the central Atacama Desert than today. Separated by distinct lithological boundaries, the upper sediments in both clay pans show several similar sediment facies typical of alluvial-fan deposition, e.g., proximal mudflows and debris flows, sheetflood, and distal alluvial sediment flows, but also pedogenic calcium sulfates. The shift to a predominant alluvial-fan deposition, which is common after torrential rainfall in the Atacama Desert today, implies a general modification of the environmental conditions of the study areas.</p> <p>These initial results already highlight the potential of the sediment records from the PAG and Paranal clay pans to provide unprecedented information on the Neogene precipitation history in the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert.</p>https://sd.copernicus.org/articles/34/1/2025/sd-34-1-2025.pdf |
| spellingShingle | V. Wennrich J. Diederich-Leicher B. N. Blanco-Arrué B. N. Blanco-Arrué C. Büttner S. Buske E. Campos Sepulveda T. Dunai J. Feller E. Galego A. Hasberg N. Leicher D. A. López J. Maldonado A. Medialdea A. Medialdea L. Ninnemann L. Ninnemann R. Perryman J. C. Ríos-Contesse B. Ritter S. Scheidt B. Vargas-Machuca P. Yogeshwar P. Yogeshwar M. Melles Unearthing the climate history of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile – deep drilling in two clay pans of the Coastal Cordillera Scientific Drilling |
| title | Unearthing the climate history of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile – deep drilling in two clay pans of the Coastal Cordillera |
| title_full | Unearthing the climate history of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile – deep drilling in two clay pans of the Coastal Cordillera |
| title_fullStr | Unearthing the climate history of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile – deep drilling in two clay pans of the Coastal Cordillera |
| title_full_unstemmed | Unearthing the climate history of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile – deep drilling in two clay pans of the Coastal Cordillera |
| title_short | Unearthing the climate history of the Atacama Desert in northern Chile – deep drilling in two clay pans of the Coastal Cordillera |
| title_sort | unearthing the climate history of the atacama desert in northern chile deep drilling in two clay pans of the coastal cordillera |
| url | https://sd.copernicus.org/articles/34/1/2025/sd-34-1-2025.pdf |
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