Patterns and timing of loess-paleosol transitions in Eurasia: Constraints for paleoclimate studies

Our comparison of Eurasian LPS shows generally similar patterns of paleosol formation, while highlighting several crucial differences. Especially for paleosols developed around ~ 200 and ~ 300 ka, the reported timing of soil formation differs by up to 30 ka. In addition, a drying and cooling trend over the last ~ 300 ka has been documented in Europe, with no such evidence in the Asian records. The comparison shows that there is still uncertainty in defining the chronostratigraphic framework for these records on glacial-interglacial time scales in the order of 5-30 kyr for the last ~ 440 ka. We argue that the baseline of the magnetic susceptibility proxy in loess from the Carpathian Basin is the most striking difference between European LPS and the Chinese Loess Plateau. In our opinion, many of the current timing/age differences may be overcome once a comparable stratigraphic interpretation is achieved.