Data for modern soil chronometry using fallout radionuclides

Abstract

We describe environmental gamma spectrometry data for > 700 soil samples collected from > 35 high-resolution quantitative soil profiles spanning global sites. The data are collected for the purpose of modern soil chronometry based on fallout radionuclides (FRNs) 7Be and 210Pb, using the Linked Radionuclide Accumulation model (LRC). Cumulative gamma counting time for samples in the database exceeds 6.5 years. This is a living database to be augmented as data become available and corrected with improvements in data reduction, or identification of errors. Versions and changes will be indexed. Special attention is paid to measurement uncertainties in the dataset, and to how atmospheric or excess 210Pb is defined in both geochemical and mathematical terms for use in the LRC model. Basic familiarity with gamma spectrometry and radionuclide decay chains is assumed. The data set can be accessed at https://doi.org/10.17632/cfxkpn6hj9.1 (Landis, 2025).