Environmentally sensitive grain-size component (ESGSC) extracted from grain-size data of a sediment core B2, which were retrieved from mud area southwest off Cheju Island (MACI), East China Sea (ECS), can be used to indicate the variations of East Asia Winter Monsoon (EAWM), with high (low) content/mean-size of ESGCS denote to strong (weak) EAWM. Combined with AMS14C datings core B2 provides a continuous high-resolution record of EAWM changes over the past 2300 years, with an average resolution of 13 years. The results show that the variations of EAWM are con-sistent with temperature changes inferred from historical documents in eastern China over the past 2300 years, from which four climate stages may be identified. In stages before 1900 aBP (50 AD) and 1450―780 aBP (50―1170 AD) the EAWM were comparatively weak, corresponding to warm climate periods in eastern China, respectively. And in stages of 1900―1450 aBP (50―500 AD) and 780―219 aBP (1170―1731 AD) the EAWM were strongly developed, which correspond well to climate changes of two cold periods in eastern China. It is also shown from this study that the stage at 780―219 aBP (1170―1731 AD) was the coldest climate period during the last 2300 years and could be, therefore, related to the Little Ice Age (LIA). Climatic fluctuations appeared obviously in all the four stages, and two climate events of abrupt changes from warm to cold occurred at around 1900 aBP (50 AD) and 780 aBP (1170 AD), of which the latter is probably related to globe-scale changes of atmospheric circulation at that time.
Based on the data of high-resolution seismic profiles, an ancient river channel sys-tem of the last glaciation occurred along the Zhedong and Xihu depression in the southeast of Hupijiao rise. The distribution of the channel fill system shows that the ancient Changjiang River went through the Changjiang depression into the low land plain of the outside continental shelf during the low sea level cycle of the last glaciation. The big channel fill into Okinawa Trough is not found due to the depletion of the river kinetic energy in the low land plain. The river discharge dispersal was of an important role to the dilution of the northern Okinawa Trough sea at that time. Six ancient river channel systems (A―F), which are main distributaries of ancient Changjiang in the East China Sea continental shelf during the last glaciation, may be buried off the modern Changjiang estuary. The distribution of these channels coincides with the zonal elevations in the sea floor.
LI Guangxue1,2, LIU Yong1, YANG Zigeng3, YUE Shuhong4, YANG Wenda5 & HAN Xibin1 1. College of Marine Geo-science, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266003, China
