Pliocene and Early Pleistocene glaciation and landscape evolution on the Patagonian Steppe, Santa Cruz province, Argentina. (1st January 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Clague, John J.; Barendregt, Rene W.; Menounos, Brian; Roberts, Nicholas J.; Rabassa, Jorge; Martinez, Oscar; Ercolano, Bettina; Corbella, Hugo; Hemming, Sidney R.
• Is Part Of: Quaternary science reviews. Volume 227(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-01-01
• Subjects: Glaciation -- Cenozoic -- Landscape evolution -- Geomorphology -- Radiogenic isotopes -- Paleomagnetism -- Patagonia -- Argentina -- South America; Geology, Stratigraphic -- Quaternary -- Periodicals; Stratigraphie -- Quaternaire -- Périodiques; 551.79
• DOI: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2019.105992
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0277-3791

Abstract

Abstract: At least seven late Pliocene tills cap plateaus (mesetas) south of Lago Viedma, just east of the Andes in Argentine Patagonia. Chronologic constraints on the tills are provided by 40 Ar/ 39 Ar ages and magnetic polarities on associated basalt flows and sediments. The tills were deposited by piedmont glaciers that reached at least 80 km east of the crest of the Andes and flowed on a low-relief surface sloping gently downward in that direction. The oldest of the tills is about 3.6 Ma old. Glacial deposits dating to the Pliocene-Pleistocene transition are present at least 40 km beyond the east limit of the Pliocene tills at Lago Viedma, and tills of similar age occur at Condor Cliff in the Río Santa Cruz valley to the southeast. A sequence of at least seven Early Pleistocene (2.1–1.1 Ma) tills is present between basalt flows in the Cerro del Fraile meseta south of Lago Argentino. The glaciers that deposited these Early Pleistocene tills reached far beyond the Marine Isotope Stage 2 limit in the Río Santa Cruz valley. Based on positions, extents, and ages of the un-deformed, basalt-capped mesetas flanking Lago Viedma, we conclude that the topography in this area was profoundly changed during the Pleistocene – the low to moderate relief Pliocene surface was deeply incised by glaciers that became increasingly confined to, and flowed within, troughs. The valley floors today are up to 1350 m below the late Pliocene surface. Highlights: The Patagonian Ice Sheet advanced over the western Argentine steppe many times during the late Pliocene. The steppe east of the southern Andes during the late Pliocene was an elevated surface of low to moderate relief. The late Pliocene steppe was elevated and slightly tilted during the Quaternary, but not otherwise deformed. Pleistocene glaciers deeply incised the Pliocene land surface, forming the deep valleys of the present landscape.