Patagonian ash on sub-Antarctic South Georgia: expanding the tephrostratigraphy of southern South America into the Atlantic sector of the Southern Ocean: PATAGONIAN ASH ON SUB-ANTARCTIC SOUTH GEORGIA

Fingerprinting non-visible volcanic ash (cryptotephra) enables precise dating and time synchronization of palaeoclimate archives. Recent analytical advances allow us to strengthen and expand existing tephrostratigraphical frameworks and harness the full potential of this powerful geochronological tool. Here, we present geochemical (electron microprobe) and chronological (C-14) evidence to show that ash found in a peat section on the sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia correlates to the approximate to 2950 cal a BP Alpehue eruption of the Chilean Sollipulli volcano. This discovery marks the first tephra fingerprint on South Georgia and expands the recently refined tephrostratigraphy of Patagonia approximate to 3000km into the Southern Ocean. As deposition of this tephra horizon coincides with a major shift in regional atmospheric conditions, future finds may yield information on the spatiotemporal pattern of Southern Ocean climate dynamics.