Problems of C-14 dating in fossil soils within tectonically active highlands of Russian Altai in the chronological context of the late Pleistocene megafloods

摘要

A complicated tectonic and sedimentation history of the high-mountainous south-eastern part of Russian Altai predetermined the presence of sources of ancient organic matter in the region. During the Pleistocene these deposits were affected by various exogenous processes that leads to mixing of young and old carbon in a unique (for each sample) ratio and strongly affects the results of radiocarbon dating. This paper presents the results of multidisciplinary investigations of pedosedimentary sequences and discusses C-14 dating of heterochronous organic matter in paleosols of two locations within the Chuya basin in the chronological context of the late Pleistocene megafloods.