LAKE RECORDS DURING THE LAST GLACIAL MAXIMUM FROM XINJIANG, NW CHINA AND THEIR CLIMATIC IMPLICATIONS

This study deals with the climate changes during the Last Glacial Maximum(LGM)upon the latest work in Xinjiang. Possible mechanisms driving the climate change are discussed. With the study of the lacustrine cores from the Wulungu, Bosten and Balikun lakes, it is found that, during the period of LGM, the samples from these lakes are characterized by sandy and/or silty deposits with a low content of organic matters. The pollen assemblage of the Balikun lake shows that this area was dominated by Chenopodiaceae and Asteraceae during the LGM,and characterized by the lowest pollen abundance in the whole cores. It is inferred that the water level of the lakes in Xinjing area were low or close to drying up during the LGM, implying that the climate of this area were dramatically dry. This result does not support the interpretation of an extremely humid LGM in Central Asia.