Isotope studies of Palaeoclimate (IsoPAL-2) - through geological time

Date:
23rd November, 2004

Organisations:
British Geological Survey in association with BSRG

Venue:
NERC Isotope Geosciences Laboratory (NIGL).

Background:
The Natural Environment Research Council has identified Global Change as one of the five main issues on which its research should be focused in the next decade, and the need to know about natural climate variation over a range of time-scales is regarded as a key area for development. Isotopic techniques, especially the environmentally sensitive stable isotopes are likely to play an important role in gaining this knowledge of past environments.

NERC’s Isotope Geosciences Laboratory (NIGL) is a national facility for providing isotope scientific support to the UK’s environmental research community. We would like to get researchers in the UK together to discuss current palaeoclimate research (over a range of time scales) using isotope techniques.

Meeting Overview:
The workshop will comprise a series of short keynote presentations giving examples, or overviews of research using isotopes in palaeoclimate research (from the recent to the Proterozoic). By bringing both recent (Quaternary) and older (over geological time frames) researchers together we hope to span the divide by discussing all aspects of isotopes in palaeoenvironmental research from modern calibration studies to the effects of diagenetic alteration (from deposition to deep burial) of the records. The keynote presentations will involve isotope applications to terrestrial and aquatic records.

Speakers:

John McArthur - Belemnites: diagenetic alteration and palaeo-temperatures (del18O, Mg/Ca).

Julian Andrews - Environmental and climatic records from stable isotopes in tufas: synthesis and critical review

Ian Fairchild - Karstic systems and the preservation of palaeoenvironmental signals by speleothems

Paul Wignall - Uses and abuses of carbon isotopes in palaeoclimate analysis over geological time scales

Melanie Leng - Environment and climate records from stable isotopes in diatom silica: how far have we got?

Gawen Jenkin - Unravelling Proterozoic palaeoenvironments from isotope signals

Alayne Street Perrot - The interpretation of isotope signals from Quaternary organic materials in lake sediment records

Jane Evans - The preservation of isotope signals in bones and teeth and how they can be used to assess palaeoenvironment

Peter van Calsteren - U-series dating in speleothems and lake sediments - progress and problems

Posters:
Posters are also invited, especially regarding the application of isotope techniques to specific sites (please let us know if you intend to present a poster when you register).

Registration:
If you would like to attend then please contact the workshop co-ordinator to be placed on the mailing list:

Carol Arrowsmith - email:

All other enquiries to:

Melanie Leng - email:

NERC Isotope Geosciences Laboratory,
British Geological Survey,
Keyworth, Nottingham NG12 5GG.

Workshop Flier:
Click here to download this notice as a pdf file.