This proposal seeks to use continuous u-channel and discrete paleomagnetic data in combination with color analysis and shipboard data to develop chronological and climate data on the Quaternary contourite section cored during IODP exp. 339.The magnetic data will enable development of a detailed regional type section of Quaternary geomagnetic field variability with implications for both geochronology and larger questions concerning the nature of the magnetic field and geodynamo. Five sites cored during exp. 339 will be examined and preliminary data suggests that magnetic properties can be correlated from hole-to-hole. The thickness of the Quaternary record and overall high sedimentation rates could make these cores particularly amenable to this type of detailed analysis. This study, in combination with isotopic, astronomic, and stratigraphic analysis will enable construction of an exceptionally detailed chronology which can then be tied to climate models, especially those related to thermohaline circulation. This is directly related to the primary objective of exp. 339 which is the development and constraint of models relating saline Mediterranean outflow to climate variations and events. In the modern Atlantic, this outflow has important effects of the circulation of deep ocean water. The understanding of these circulation patterns is one important element of predicting global climate variations.
