Is There a Time-Transgressive Holocene Optimum in the East Asian Monsoon Area?

Abstract

We have carried out a multiproxy analysis of high-resolution eutrophic peat/mud, sand dune, and loess/paleosol sequences covering the Holocene period in both southern and northern China, in order to test the hypothesis of a time-transgressive Holocene optimum in the East Asian monsoon area (An et al. 2000). Samples were radiocarbon dated to establish the chronology. Our results indicate that the Holocene optimum occurred between ∼10,000–5000 cal yr ago in both southern and northern China, consistent with a global pattern rather than simply a local expression. Our data also support the conclusion that the evolution of Holocene climate in China is consistent with changes in Northern Hemisphere solar radiation.