Terrestrial in situ cosmogenic nuclides: theory and application

The cosmogenic nuclide exposure history method is undergoing major developments in analytical, theoretical, and applied areas. The capability to routinely measure low concentrations of stable and radioactive cosmogenic nuclides has led to new methods for addressing long-standing geologic questions and has provided insights into rates and styles of surficial processes. The different physical and chemical properties of the six most widely used nuclides: He-3, Be-10, C-14, Ne-21, Al-26, and Cl-36, make it possible to apply the surface exposure dating methods on rock surfaces of virtually any lithology at any latitude and altitude, for exposures ranging from 10(2) to 10(7) years. The terrestrial in situ cosmogenic nuclide method is beginning to revolutionize the manner in which we study landscape evolution. Single or multiple nuclides can be measured in a single rock surface to obtain erosion rates on boulder and bedrock surfaces, fluvial incision rates, denudation rates of individual landforms or entire drainage basins, burial histories of rock surfaces and sediment, scarp retreat, fault slip rates, paleoseismology, and paleoaltimetry. Ages of climatic variations recorded by moraine and alluvium sediments are being directly determined. Advances in our understanding of how cosmic radiation interacts with the geomagnetic field and atmosphere will improve numerical simulations of cosmic-ray interactions over any exposure duration and complement additional empirical measurements of nuclide production rates. The total uncertainty in the exposure ages is continually improving. This article presents the theory necessary for interpreting cosmogenic nuclide data, reviews estimates of parameters, describes strategies and practical considerations in field applications, and assesses sources of error in interpreting cosmogenic nuclide measurements. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.