Ancient lake deposits in the Mojave Desert indicate that the water cycle in this currently dry place was radically different under past climates. Here we revisit a 700 m core drilled 55 years ago from Searles Valley, California, that recovered evidence for a lacustrine phase during the late Pliocene. We update the paleomagnetic age model and extract new biomarker evidence for climatic conditions from lacustrine deposits (3.373–2.706 Ma). The MBT5Me′ temperature proxy, based on bacterial membrane lipids, detects present-day conditions (21 ± 3 ºC, 1s, n = 2) initially, followed by warmer-than-present conditions (25 ± 3 ºC, n = 17) starting at 3.268 and ending at 2.734 Ma. This is supported by salinity indicators from bacterial and archaeal biomarkers that reveal lake salinity increased after 3.268 Ma. The δ13C values of plant waxes (-30.7 ± 1.4‰, n = 28) are consistent with local C3 taxa, likely expanded conifer woodlands during the pluvial with less C4 than the Pleistocene. dD values (-174 ± 5‰, n = 25) of plant waxes indicate precipitation dD values (‑89 ± 5‰, n = 25) in the late Pliocene are within the same range as the late Pleistocene precipitation dD. Microbial biomarkers identify a deep, freshwater lake and a cooling that corresponds to the onset of major Northern Hemisphere glaciation at marine isotope stage MIS M2. A more saline lake persisted for ~0.6 Ma across the subsequent warmth of the late Pliocene before the lake desiccated at the Pleistocene intensification of Northern Hemisphere Glaciation.

The stable carbon isotope composition (δ13C) of plant components such as plant wax biomarkers is an important tool for reconstructing past vegetation. Plant wax δ13C is mainly controlled by photosynthetic pathways, allowing for the differentiation of C4 tropical grasses and C3 forests. Proxy interpretations are however complicated by additional factors such as aridity, vegetation density, elevation, and the considerable δ13C variability found among C3 plant species. Moreover, studies on plant wax δ13C in tropical soils and plants have focused on Africa, while structurally different South American savannas, shrublands and forests remain understudied. Here, we analyze the δ13C composition of long-chain n-alkanes and fatty acids from tropical South American soils and leaf litter to assess the isotopic variability in each vegetation type and to investigate the influence of climatic features on δ13C. Rainforests and open vegetation types show distinct values, with rainforests having a narrow range of low δ13C values (n-C29 n-alkane: -34.5 +0.9/-0.6 ‰ ; Suess-effect corrected) allowing for the detection of even minor incursions of savanna into rainforests (13C-enriched). While Cerrado savannas and semi-arid Caatinga shrublands grow under distinctly different climates, they can yield indistinct δ13C values for most compounds. Cerrado soils and litter show pronounced isotopic spreads between the n-C33 and n-C29 alkanes, while Caatinga shrublands show consistent values across the two homologues, thereby enabling the differentiation of these vegetation types. The same multi-homologue isotope analysis can be extended to differentiate African shrublands from savannas.

The Eocene-Oligocene Transition (EOT) marks the shift from greenhouse to icehouse conditions at 34 Ma, when a permanent ice sheet developed on Antarctica. Climate modeling studies have recently assessed the drivers of the transition globally. Here we revisit those experiments for a detailed study of the southern high latitudes in comparison to the growing number of mean annual sea surface temperature (SST) and mean air temperature (MAT) proxy reconstructions, allowing us to assess proxy-model temperature agreement and refine estimates for the magnitude of the pCO2 forcing of the EOT. We compile and update published proxy temperature records on and around Antarctica for the late Eocene (38-34 Ma) and early Oligocene (34-30 Ma). Compiled SST proxies cool by up to 3°C and MAT by up to 4°C between the timeslices. Proxy data were compared to previous climate model simulations representing pre- and post-EOT, typically forced with a halving of pCO2. We scaled the model outputs to identify the magnitude of pCO2 change needed to drive a commensurate change in temperature to best fit the temperature proxies. The multi-model ensemble needs a 30 or 33% decrease in pCO2, to best fit MAT or SST proxies respectively, a difference of just 3%. These proxy-model intercomparisons identify pCO2 as the primary forcing of EOT cooling, with a magnitude (-200 or -243 ppmv) approaching that of the pCO2 proxies (-150 ppmv). However individual model estimates span -66 to -375 ppmv, thus proxy-model uncertainties are dominated by model divergence.

Well-dated lacustrine records are essential to establish the timing and drivers of regional hydroclimate change. Searles Basin, California records the depositional history of a fluctuating saline-alkaline lake in the terminal basin of the Owens River system draining the eastern Sierra Nevada. Here we establish a U-Th chronology for the ~76-m-long SLAPP-SLRS17 core collected in 2017 based on dating of evaporite minerals. 98 dated samples comprising 9 different minerals were evaluated based on stratigraphic, mineralogic, textural, chemical and reproducibility criteria. After application of these criteria, a total of 37 dated samples remained as constraints for the age model. A lack of dateable minerals between 145-110 ka left the age model unconstrained over the penultimate glacial termination (Termination II). We thus established a tie point between plant wax δD values in the core and a nearby speleothem δ18O record at the beginning of the Last Interglacial. We construct a Bayesian age model allowing stratigraphy to inform sedimentation rate inflections. We find the >210 ka SLAPP-SRLS17 record contains five major units that correspond with prior work. The new dating is broadly consistent with previous efforts but provides more precise age estimates and a detailed evaluation of evaporite depositional history. We also offer a substantial revision of the age of the Bottom Mud-Mixed Layer contact, shifting it from ~130 ka to 178±3 ka. The new U-Th chronology documents the timing of mud and salt layers and lays the foundation for climate reconstructions.

The climate of the southwestern North America has experienced profound changes between wet and dry phases over the past 200 kyr. To better constrain the timing, magnitude and paleoenvironmental impacts of these changes in hydroclimate, we conducted a multiproxy biomarker study from samples collected from a new 76 m sediment core (SLAPP-SRLS17) drilled in Searles Lake, California. Here, we use biomarkers and pollen to reconstruct vegetation, lake conditions and climate. We find that δD values of long chain n-alkanes are dominated by glacial to interglacial changes that match nearby Devils Hole calcite δ18O variability, suggesting both archives predominantly reflect precipitation isotopes. However, precipitation isotopes do not simply covary with evidence for wet-dry changes in vegetation and lake conditions, indicating a partial disconnect between large scale atmospheric circulation tracked by precipitation isotopes and landscape moisture availability. Increased crenarchaeol production and decreased evidence for methane cycling reveal a 10 kyr interval of a fresh, productive and well-mixed lake during Termination II, corroborating evidence for a paleolake highstand from shorelines and spillover deposits in downstream Panamint Basin during the end of the penultimate (Tahoe) glacial (140–130 ka). At the same time brGDGTs yield the lowest temperature estimates (mean months above freezing = 9 ± 3°C) of the 200 kyr record. These limnological conditions are not replicated elsewhere in the 200 kyr record, suggesting that the Heinrich stadial 11 highstand was wetter than that during the last glacial maximum and Heinrich 1 (18–15 ka).

The Great Salt Lake (UT) is a hypersaline terminal lake in the US Great Basin, and the remnant of the late glacial-pluvial Lake Bonneville. During the Holocene, hydroclimate variations have been more subtle in the basin. These variations can be investigated by organic geochemical methods within the sediment core GLAD1-GSL00-1B, cored in 2000 and recently well-dated by radiocarbon for the Holocene section (Bowen et al., 2019) with 11 meters representing 8 ka to present. Sediment samples every 30 cm (~200 years) were extracted and the total lipid extracts were analyzed by HPLC-MS to detect the full suite of microbial membrane lipids, including those responsive to temperature and salinity. Modern samples were also collected to provide local calibration for the archaeol-caldarchaeol ecometric (ACE) salinity proxy, where ACE = archaeol/(archaeol + caldarchaeol). ACE detects the increase in lipids of halophilic archaea, relative to generalists, as salinity increases. From currently analyzed data and calibrations, we find Holocene lake salinity estimates ranged from 239 to 283 psu, suggesting persistent hypersalinity with < 50 psu variability across 8 kyr. For comparison, the modern salinity of the lake ranges from 100 to 160 psu in the southern half, and 240 to 270 psu in the north. From ~7-6 ka, salinity estimates were relatively high at 270 to ~280 psu. Following 6 ka, salinity decreases and reaches its lowest value of 239 psu at 4.8 ka. Afterwards, salinity increases and varies between ~250 to ~270 psu, remaining at 270 psu in the last 1 kyr. This new salinity record is compared to available shoreline reconstructions and regional climate records. The temperature proxy, MBT’5Me,­ as calibrated by BayMBT, suggests mean annual air temperature estimates ranged from 12°C to 24°C (compared to modern mean temperature of 13°C). This indicates a substantial, variable complication from salinity in this consistently hypersaline lake, as recently reported for the MBT’5Me­ proxy.

Great Salt Lake (UT) is a hypersaline terminal lake in the US Great Basin, and the remnant of the late glacial Lake Bonneville. Holocene hydroclimate variations cannot be interpreted from the shoreline record, but instead can be investigated by proxies archived in the sediments. GLAD1-GSL00-1B was cored in 2000 and recently dated by radiocarbon for the Holocene section with the top 11 m representing ~7 ka to present. Sediment samples every 30 cm (~220 years) were studied for the full suite of microbial membrane lipids, including those responsive to temperature and salinity. The ACE index detects the increase in lipids of halophilic archaea, relative to generalists, as salinity increases. We find Holocene ACE values ranged from 81-98, which suggests persistent hypersalinity with <50 g/L variability across 7.2 kyr. The temperature proxy, MBTʹ5Me,­ yields values similar to modern mean annual air temperature for months above freezing (MAF = 15.7°C) over the last 5.5 kyr. Several GDGT metrics show a step shift at 5.5 ka before which temperature estimates are unreliable due to the shift in lake ecology and likely shallow depth. The step change in lake conditions at 5.5 ka and additional variations within the late Holocene are compared to regional climate records. We find evidence for a dry mid-Holocene in GSL, corroborating other records.