On the Consistency of Radiocarbon and TL Dates of the Upper Palaeosols from Loess Sections in Kashmir

Radiocarbon dates of around 18 Kyr for palaeosols in Kashmir, indicative of warm-humid climate, have been an enigma as this period is regarded as the last glacial maximum (LGM) globally. In case of aeolian deposits such as loess in Kashmir, which can be assumed to have been exposed to solar radiation before deposition, thermoluminescence (TL) method is also being used for estimating the period since burial. Until a few years ago, when only limited number of measurements were available, it was believed that the dates of Kashmir palaeosols by the radiocarbon and TL methods were apparently not in agreement with each other.

In this note, we use all the available organic fraction radiocarbon and TL dates for the top two palaeosol horizons (S9 and S10) from Kashmir loess-palaeosol sections and show that the dates obtained by the two methods are concordant within the limits of uncertainties of the two methods.