Timing and extent of Quaternary glaciations in the Tianger Range, eastern Tian Shan, China, investigated using 10Be surface exposure dating

•We present 10Be-derived glacial chronology in the eastern Tian Shan, China.•10Be ages record five major glacial events during MIS 6 or older, 4, 3, 2, and LIA.•Multiple glacial events are preserved on the southern slope (Ala Valley).•Only glacial events since MIS 2 are found on the northern slope (Daxi Valley).•The LIA advance is the only well-preserved Holocene glacial event in the Tian Shan.

Reconstructing glacial chronologies with consistent methods is critical for efforts to examine the timing and pattern of past climate change. Cosmogenic 10Be surface exposure dating has been widely used to constrain the timing of glacial events on the Tibetan Plateau and in Central Asia. However, few such studies have been conducted in the Chinese Tian Shan and available 10Be ages from this region have only provided evidence for glacial events during the global Last Glacial Maximum (gLGM) and Lateglacial. Here, we present 45 10Be surface exposure ages from glacial landforms in the Ala and Daxi valleys, two formerly glaciated valleys draining the Tianger Range, eastern Tian Shan. Combined with previously published 10Be surface exposure ages from the Daxi Valley in the source area of the Urumqi River, the new ages record five major glacial events during Marine Oxygen Isotope Stages (MIS) 6 or older, 4, 3, 2, and 1 (during the Little Ice Age, LIA). Landforms from glacial events since MIS 2 are found on the northern slope of the Tianger Range (Daxi Valley), whereas evidence for the older glacial events is only preserved on its southern slope (Ala Valley). This disparity may be caused by different preservation- and micro-climatic conditions on the northern and southern slopes of this mountain range, due to differences in gradient and aspect. The LIA glacial advances are apparently the only Holocene glacial event recorded in this area. Earlier Holocene glacial events were probably so restricted in extent that they were destroyed by subsequent LIA advances.