Abstract ATM-9809322 Arbogast, Alan F. Michigan State University Title: Late Quaternary Eolian Environments in the Interior of Michigan This award supports a study of post-glacial eolian landscapes in the interior of Michigan. A variety of large dune fields are scattered throughout upper and lower Michigan, where they mantle swampy lacustrine and outwash surfaces far from the modern Great Lakes. This study will reconstruct the geomorphic and paleoenvironmental history of these dunes by documenting both the timing of eolian-sand mobilization and the destabilizing variables. In order to meet the research objectives, subsurface investigations will be conducted over a broad geographical area. Stratigraphic characteristics, including the relationships of pedostratigraphic units and the morphology and orientation of sedimentary structures, will be described in detail. Geochronometric data will be derived through soil descriptions, Optical Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dating, and by estimating the radiocarbon ages of organic-rich deposits (e.g, charcoal, peat) buried by eolian sand.
