ALBERT

Description: Between October 2008 and May 2009, the International Continental Scientific Drilling Program (ICDP) co-sponsored a campaign at Lake El´gygytgyn, located in a 3.6-Ma-old meteorite impact crater in northeastern Siberia. Drilling targets included three holes in the center of the 170-m-deep lake, utilizing the lake ice cover as a drilling platform, plus one hole close to the shore in the western lake catchment. At the lake’s center. the entire 315-m-thick lake sediment succession was penetrated. The sediments lack any hiatuses (i.e., no evidence of basin glaciation or desiccation), and their composition reflects the regional climatic and environmental history with great sensitivity. Hence, the record provides the first comprehensive and widely timecontinuous insights into the evolution of the terrestrial Arctic since mid-Pliocene times. This is particularly true for the lowermost 40 meters and uppermost 150 meters of the sequence, which were drilled with almost 100% recovery and likely reflect the initial lake stage during the Pliocene and the last ~2.9 Ma, respectively. Nearly 200 meters of underlying rock were also recovered; these cores consist of an almost complete section of the various types of impact breccias including broken and fractured volcanic basement rocks and associated melt clasts. The investigation of this core sequence promises new information concerning the El´gygytgyn impact event, including the composition and nature of the meteorite, the energy released, and the shock behavior of the volcanic basement rocks. Complementary information on the regional environmental history, including the permafrost history and lake-level fluctuations, is being developed from a 142-m-long drill core recovered from the permafrost deposits in the lake catchment. This core consists of gravelly and sandy alluvial fan deposits in ice-rich permafrost, presumably comprising a discontinuous record of both Quaternary and Pliocene deposits. doi:10.2204/iodp.sd.11.03.2011

Description: The combination of permafrost history and dynamics, lake level changes and the tectonical framework is considered to play a crucial role for sediment delivery to El'gygytgyn Crater Lake, NE Russian Arctic. The purpose of this study is to propose a depositional framework based on analyses of the core strata from the lake margin and historical reconstructions from various studies at the site. A sedimentological program has been conducted using frozen core samples from the 141.5 m long El'gygytgyn 5011-3 permafrost well. The drill site is located in sedimentary permafrost west of the lake that partly fills the El'gygytgyn Crater. The total core sequence is interpreted as strata building up a progradational alluvial fan delta. Four macroscopically distinct sedimentary units are identified. Unit 1 (141.5–117.0 m) is comprised of ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel and intercalated sandy layers. Sandy layers represent sediments which rained out as particles in the deeper part of the water column under highly energetic conditions. Unit 2 (117.0–24.25 m) is dominated by ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel with individual gravel layers. Most of the Unit 2 diamicton is understood to result from alluvial wash and subsequent gravitational sliding of coarse-grained (sandy gravel) material on the basin slope. Unit 3 (24.25–8.5 m) has ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel that is interrupted by sand beds. These sandy beds are associated with flooding events and represent near-shore sandy shoals. Unit 4 (8.5–0.0 m) is ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel with varying ice content, mostly higher than below. It consists of slope material and creek fill deposits. The uppermost metre is the active layer (i.e. the top layer of soil with seasonal freeze and thaw) into which modern soil organic matter has been incorporated. The nature of the progradational sediment transport taking place from the western and northern crater margins may be related to the complementary occurrence of frequent turbiditic layers in the central lake basin, as is known from the lake sediment record. Slope processes such as gravitational sliding and sheet flooding occur especially during spring melt and promote mass wasting into the basin. Tectonics are inferred to have initiated the fan accumulation in the first place and possibly the off-centre displacement of the crater lake.

Description: Frozen sediments from three cores bored in the permafrost surrounding the El'gygytgyn Impact Crater Lake have been studied for pollen, non-pollen palynomorphs, plant macrofossils and rhizopods. The palynological study of these cores contributes to a higher resolution of time intervals presented in a poor temporal resolution in the lacustrine sediments; namely the Allerød and succeeding periods. Moreover, the permafrost records better reflect local environmental changes, allowing a more reliable reconstruction of the local paleoenvironments. The new data confirm that shrub tundra with dwarf birch, shrub alder and willow dominated the lake surroundings during the Allerød warming. Younger Dryas pollen assemblages reflect abrupt changes to grass-sedge-herb dominated environments reflecting significantly drier and cooler climate. Low shrub tundra with dwarf birch and willow dominate the lake vicinity at the onset of the Holocene. The find of larch seeds indicate its local presence around 11 000 cal yr BP and, thus a northward shift of treeline by about 100 km during the early Holocene thermal optimum. Forest tundra with larch and shrub alder stands grew in the area during the early Holocene. After ca. 3500 cal yr BP similar-to-modern plant communities became common in the lake vicinity.

Description: Modern process studies of the hydrologic balance of Lake El'gygytgyn, central Chukotka, and the sediment income from the catchment were carried out during a field campaign in spring and summer 2003. Despite high uncertainties due to the limited data, the results provide important first estimates for better understanding the modern and past sedimentation processes in this basin. Formed ca. 3.6 million years ago as a result of a meteorite impact, the basin contains one of the longest paleoclimate records in the terrestrial Arctic. Fluvial activity is concentrated over the short snowmelt period (about 20 days in second part of June). Underground outflow plays a very important role in the water balance and predominates over surface outflow. The residence time of the lake water is estimated to be about 100 yr.

Description: This study focuses on the temperature field observed in boreholes drilled as part of interdisciplinary scientific campaign targeting the El'gygytgyn Crater Lake in NE Russia. Temperature data are available from two sites: the lake borehole 5011-1 located near the center of the lake reaching 400 m depth, and the land borehole 5011-3 at the rim of the lake, with a depth of 140 m. Constraints on permafrost depth and past climate changes are derived from numerical simulation of the thermal regime associated with the lake-related talik structure. The thermal properties of the subsurface needed for these simulations are based on laboratory measurements of representative cores from the quaternary sediments and the underlying impact-affected rock, complemented by further information from geophysical logs and data from published literature. The temperature observations in the lake borehole 5011-1 are dominated by thermal perturbations related to the drilling process, and thus only give reliable values for the lowermost value in the borehole. Undisturbed temperature data recorded over more than two years are available in the 140 m deep land-based borehole 5011-3. The analysis of these observations allows determination of not only the recent mean annual ground surface temperature, but also the ground surface temperature history, though with large uncertainties. Although the depth of this borehole is by far too insufficient for a complete reconstruction of past temperatures back to the Last Glacial Maximum, it still affects the thermal regime, and thus permafrost depth. This effect is constrained by numerical modeling: assuming that the lake borehole observations are hardly influenced by the past changes in surface air temperature, an estimate of steady-state conditions is possible, leading to a meaningful value of 14 ± 5 K for the post-glacial warming. The strong curvature of the temperature data in shallower depths around 60 m can be explained by a comparatively large amplitude of the Little Ice Age (up to 4 K), with low temperatures prevailing far into the 20th century. Other mechanisms, like varying porosity, may also have an influence on the temperature profile, however, our modeling studies imply a major contribution from recent climate changes.

Description: A sedimentological program has been conducted using frozen core samples from the 141.5 m long El'gygytgyn 5011-3 permafrost well. The drill site is located in sedimentary permafrost west of the lake that partly fills the El'gygytgyn Crater. The total core sequence is interpreted as strata building up a progradational alluvial fan delta. Four structurally and texturally distinct sedimentary units are identified. Unit 1 (141.5–117.0 m) is comprised of ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel and intercalated sandy layers. Sandy layers represent sediments which rained out as particles in the deeper part of the water column under highly energetic conditions. Unit 2 (117.0–24.25 m) is dominated by ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel with individual gravel layers. Most of the unit 2 diamicton is understood to result from alluvial wash and subsequent gravitational sliding of coarse-grained material on the basin slope. Unit 3 (24.25–8.5 m) has ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel that is interrupted by sand beds. These sandy beds are associated with flooding events and represent near-shore sandy shoals. Unit 4 (8.5–0.0 m) is ice-cemented, matrix-supported sandy gravel with varying ice content, mostly higher than below. It consists of slope material and creek fill deposits. The uppermost meter is the active layer into which modern soil organic matter has been incorporated. The nature of the progradational sediment transport taking place from the western and northern crater margins may be related to the complementary occurrence of frequent turbiditic layers in the central lake basin as is known from the lake sediment record. Slope processes such as gravitational sliding and sheet flooding that takes place especially during spring melt are thought to promote mass wasting into the basin. Tectonics are inferred to have initiated the fan accumulation in the first place and possibly the off-centre displacement of the crater lake.

Description: We present results of numerical simulations of the temperature field of the subsurface around and beneath the crater Lake El'gygytgyn in NE Russia, which is subject of an interdisciplinary drilling campaign within the International Continental Drilling Program (ICDP). This study focuses on determining the permafrost depth and the transition between talik and permafrost regimes, both, under steady-state and transient conditions of past climate changes. Thermal properties of the subsurface are deduced from measurements on three representative core samples taken from the quaternary sediments and the underlying impact rock. Further information is derived from the available geophysical logs and literature data. The temperature data from the lake borehole ICDP site 5011-1 down to 400 m depth below lake bottom are dominated by thermal perturbations related to the drilling process, and thus only give reliable values for the lowermost value in the borehole. Undisturbed temperature data recorded over more than two years in the 140 m deep land-based borehole ICDP site 5011-3 allow to determine the mean annual ground surface temperature (GST), as well as its history (GSTH) to a certain extent. Although the borehole's depth is by far not sufficient for a complete reconstruction of past temperatures back to the last glacial maximum (LGM), the temperature data and our modelling results show that there is still an influence of the LGM on the thermal regime, and thus on the permafrost depth. Whereas the latter result is obtained from the deeper part of the temperature profile, the rather strong curvature of the temperature data in shallower depths around 30 m can be explained by a comparatively large amplitude of the Little Ice Age (LIA), with a subsequently persistent cool period. Other mechanisms like varying porosity may also have an influence on the temperature profile, however, our modelling studies imply a major contribution from recent climate changes.

Description: Frozen sediments from three cores bored in permafrost surrounding of the El'gygytgyn Impact Crater Lake have been studied for pollen, non-pollen palynomorphs, plant macrofossils, and rhizopods. The palynological study of the cores contributes to a higher resolution of time intervals presented in a poor temporal resolution in the lacustrine sediments; namely the Allerød and succeeding periods. Moreover, permafrost records better reflect local environmental changes, thus, allowing more reliable reconstruction of the local paleoenvironments. The new data confirm that shrub tundra with dwarf birch, shrub alder and willow dominated in the lake surroundings during the Allerød warming. Younger Dryas pollen assemblages reflect abrupt changes to grass-sedge-herb dominated environments reflecting significant climate deterioration. Low shrub tundra with dwarf birch and willow dominate the lake vicinity at the onset of the Holocene. The founds of larch seeds indicate its local presence around 11 000 cal. yr BP and, thus a northward shift of treeline by about 100 km during the early Holocene thermal optimum. Forest tundra with larch and shrub alder stands grew in the area during the early Holocene. After ca. 3500 cal. yr BP similar-to-modern plant communities became common in the lake vicinity.

Description: Past permafrost thaw and freeze has destabilised the basin slopes of Lake El'gygytgyn in the northeastern Eurasian Arctic. This has probably promoted the release of mass movements from the lake edge to the deeper basin as known from frequently occurring turbidite layers in the lake sediment column. The continuous sediment record from the Arctic spans the last 3.6 Ma and for much of this time permafrost dynamics and lake level changes likely have played a crucial role for sediment delivery to the lake. Changes in the ground ice hydrochemical composition (pH, δ18O, δD, electrical conductivity, Na+, Mg2+, Ca2+, K+, HCO3−, Cl−, SO4−) of a 141 m long permafrost record from the western crater plain are examined to reconstruct repeated freeze and thaw cycles at the lake edge. Stable water isotope and major ion records of ground ice in the permafrost reflect both a synsedimentary palaeo-precipitation signal preserved in the near-surface permafrost (0.0 m to 9.1 m core depth) and a postdepositional record of talik thawing and refreezing in deeper layers of the core (9.1 to 141.0 m core depth). The lake marginal permafrost dynamics were controlled by lake level changes that episodically flooded the surfaces and induced thaw in the underlying frozen ground. At least three cycles of freeze and thaw during marine isotope stage (MIS) 7, possibly MIS 5, and the Allerød (AD) are identified and the hydrochemical data point to a vertical and horizontal talik refreezing through time.