Authors
Fabrizio Antonioli, Stefano Furlani, Paolo Montagna, Paolo Stocchi, Lucio Calcagnile, Gianluca Quarta, Jonathan Cecchinel, Valeria Lo Presti, Maurizio Gasparo Morticelli, Franco Foresta Martin, Edwige Pons-Branchu, Valeria Vaccher
Publication date
2021/6/14
Source
Water
Volume
13
Issue
12
Pages
1663
Publisher
MDPI
Description
This study presents a global overview of the submerged speleothems used to reconstruct paleo sea levels and reports new results from two stalactites collected in the Mediterranean Sea. Coastal cave deposits significantly contributed to the understanding of global and regional sea-level variations during the Middle and Late Quaternary. The studied speleothems cover the last 1.4 Myr and focused mainly on Marine Isotope Stages (MIS) 1, 2, 3, 5.1, 5.3, 5.5, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3 and 7.5. The results indicate that submerged speleothems represent extraordinary archives that can provide detailed information on former sea-level changes. The two stalactites collected in the central Mediterranean Sea, at Favignana and Ustica islands (Sicily, Italy), are both characterized by continental, phreatic or marine layers. The U-Th and 14C ages of the new speleothems provide results of great interest for relative sea-level changes over the last 1000 years.
Total citations
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