Quaternary loesses, loess-like sediments, soils and climate change in Iran

The author has studied sediment-soil sections in Iran in great detail in order to reconstruct and depict Middle to Upper Quaternary climate change and landscape evolution in this region. Following a comprehensive review of loess occurrences in Iran and adjacent countries, in fact, Western Asia, the study concentrates in detail on the soil sedimentology and pedology of loess reference sections of the Caspian lowlands (Northern Iran) and on loess-like sediments of the Persepolis Basin (Southern Iran). Both sections are characterized by sub-humid to semi-arid climates and present ideal laboratories for studying past climate changes and their effects on sediment deposition and soil formation. The sedimentological/paleopedological analyses presented here include detailed profile descriptions and copious micromorphological, geochemical and mineralogical data. Based on pedostratigraphic correlations and systematic luminescence- and radiocarbon dating, a new chronostratigrapic framework of sediment deposition and soil formation in Iran is described. The framework developed herein is subsequently used to correlate the studied sections with sediment-soil sequences of West and Central Asia and Eastern Europe. The synthesis chapter describes how paleoclimatic conditions affect loess accumulation, soil formation and geomorphodynamics during the formation of sediment-soil sequences, considering the importance of human impact on the geomorphodynamic settings. The book is of interest to pedologists, paleopedologists all researchers interested in loess, soils, climatic controls of their formation in the Quaternary.