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Rapid Uplift of the Altiplano Revealed Through 13C-18O Bonds in Paleosol Carbonates
Prosenjit Ghosh,1Carmala N. Garzione,2John M. Eiler1
The elevation of Earth's surface is among the most difficultenvironmental variables to reconstruct from the geological record.Here we describe an approach to paleoaltimetry based on independentand simultaneous determinations of soil temperatures and theoxygen isotope compositions of soil waters, constrained by measurementsof abundances of 13C-18O bonds in soil carbonates. We use thisapproach to show that the Altiplano plateau in the BolivianAndes rose at an average rate of 1.03 ± 0.12 millimetersper year between 10.3 and 6.7 million years ago. This rate isconsistent with the removal of dense lower crust and/or lithosphericmantle as the cause of elevation gain.
1 Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA. 2 Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14627, USA.
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