Stratigraphy and dating of Middle Pleistocene sediments from Rodderberg, Germany

Abstract

The stratigraphy and dating of lacustrine sediments and loess derivatives from Rodderberg, a crater of the East Eifel Volcanic Field in Germany, is based on luminescence dating and incorporates radiocarbon ages, fingerprinting of key tephra layers of the East Eifel Volcanic Field (Rieden Tephra, Hüttenberg Tephra, Laacher See Tephra), pollen stratigraphy, varve counting data, and a correlative age–depth model. These methods yield a robust age–depth model for the last 258 ka. Beyond this, luminescence ages differ from tephra-derived ages. In light of the apparent presence of the Rieden Tephra, the lowermost interglacial is assigned to Marine Isotope Stage (MIS) 11 or 420 ka. This provides a high-resolution record of environmental conditions representing an analogue for the Holocene, characterized by a warming planet. However, new luminescence ages may indicate a younger age for basal sediments, with the lowermost interglacial representing MIS 9. Both age–depth models constrain regional environmental changes during the Middle Pleistocene controlled by global climate variations. For the hydrologically closed nature of the Rodderberg crater, with limited pathways for sediment inflow and erosional export, these results shed new light on the continuity of long Middle Pleistocene records.