Volcanic Eruptions, Tree Rings and Multielemental Chemistry: An Investigation of Dendrochemical Potential for the Absolute Dating of Past Volcanism

Oxbow says: Charlotte Pearson's thesis explores ways of linking volcanic eruptions with dating methods that provide accurate and reliable results. Arguing that tree rings hold important chronological information of environmental chemistry she examines the potential of tree ring chemistry for the interpretation of volcanic episodes. The methodology used, Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry, is described and then applied to a series of pilot studies on different wood types from different environments and different eruptions, including some of known date. Finally two case studies from Sweden and Turkey demonstrate the practical implications of this method on modern wood and archaeological samples respectively.