We present the first marine reservoir age and ∆R determination for the island of St. Helena using marine mollusk radiocarbon dates obtained from an historical context of known age. This represents the first marine reservoir age and ∆R determination in the southern Atlantic Ocean within thousands of kilometers of the island. The depletion of 14C in the shells indicates a rather larger reservoir age for that portion of the surface Atlantic than models indicate. The implication is that upwelling old water along the Namibian coast is transported for a considerable distance, although it is likely to be variable on a decadal timescale. An artilleryman’s button, together with other artifacts found in a midden, demonstrate association of the mollusk shells with a narrow historic period of AD 1815–1835.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:rhodes/vital:6701 |
| Date | January 2008 |
| Creators | Lewis, Colin A, Reimer, P J, Reimer, R W |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Article |
| Format | 7 pages, pdf |
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