Lake Level Fluctuations in the Northern Great Basin for the Last 25,000 years

During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM; ~23,000 to 19,000 years ago or ka) and through the last deglaciation, the Great Basin physiographic region in the western United States was marked by multiple extensive lake systems, as recorded by proxy evidence and lake sediments. However, temporal constraints on the growth, desiccation, and timing of lake highstands remain poorly constrained. Studies aimed at disentangling hydroclimate dynamics have offered multiple hypotheses to explain the growth of post-LGM lakes; however, a more robust understanding is currently impeded by a general paucity of spatially and temporally robust data. In this study, we present new data constraining the timing and extent of lake highstands at three post-LGM age pluvial lakes: Lake Newark, Lake Surprise, and Lake Franklin. This data is used in concert with previously published data for these basins and others from the Northern Great Basin including Lakes Bonneville, Chewaucan, and Lahontan to compare the timings of lake growth and decay over a large spatial scale and constrain how regional hydroclimate evolved through the deglaciation.

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