Grain size of Lake Qinghai sediments: Implications for riverine input and Holocene monsoon variability

• Grain-size proxies are sensitive to monsoon-induced riverine input in Lake Qinghai.
• Grain-size inferred summer monsoon intensity weakened from early to late Holocene.
• Centennial monsoon variability is evident with distinct periods at 0.35 and 0.23 kyr.
• Solar forcing plays an important role in driving centennial monsoon variability.

Grain-size compositions of lake sediments can provide direct information on changes in transporting mechanism and sedimentary environment. Various grain-size parameters have been employed to reconstruct hydrological conditions within the lake and dust influx from outside the lake. Here we present the grain-size results of a 5-m core retrieved from Lake Qinghai, northeastern Tibetan Plateau in order to address the links between Holocene depositional process and climatic change. Our results indicate that two parameters (skewness and grain-size ratio of 8–50/2–8 μm) are sensitive to hydrodynamic changes in Lake Qinghai, which are further linked to the strength of the Asian summer monsoon. Variations of these two parameters reveal that summer monsoon intensity weakened gradually from early to late Holocene, superimposed by persistent centennial variability with dominant periods at 0.35, 0.23 and 0.12 kyr. Comparison of grain-size variations with solar activities and North Atlantic cooling events reveals that solar forcing likely plays an important role in driving centennial monsoon variability.