Paleoclimatic implications of radiocarbon dating of speleothems from the Krakow-Wielun Upland, southern Poland

Reports preliminary results of a long-term systematic study intended to gather paleoclimatic records from precisely dated speleothems. The research project is limited to speleothems deposited in caves of the Cracow-Wielun Upland. Radiocarbon dates of these samples from ca 45-20 ka BP almost exactly coincide with age range of the Interplenivistulian. A break in speleothem formation between ca 20 and 10 ka BP may be interpreted as a result of serious climatic deterioration associated with the maximum extent of the last glaciation. We observed differences among ¹⁴C, U/Th and AAR dating results. Changes of δ¹³C and δ¹⁸O in speleothems that grew between ca 30 and 20 ka BP may be interpreted as changes of paleoclimatic conditions.