Multidisciplinary tephrochronological correlation of marker events in the eastern Tyrrhenian Sea between 48 and 105 ka

Abstract The basal portion (2.92–5.08 m from core top) of the CET1 core located in a bathyal area of the eastern Tyrrhenian Sea is the subject of a multidisciplinary investigation, encompassing tephrostratigraphy, quantitative analyses of planktonic foraminifera and calcareous nannofossil assemblages, and δ 18 O measurements, supported by a 40 Ar/ 39 Ar age determination. Calcareous nannofossil assemblages allowed the attribution of the analyzed sediments to the biozone MMN21a, and the succession spans from more than 48 to ca. 105 ka, although there are at least two stratigraphic gaps and minor resedimentation episodes. A paleoclimatic reconstruction obtained via δ 18 O and planktonic foraminifera data identifies several of the major climatic events that occurred in the investigated time span. A total of 13 visible tephra layers and cryptotephras are recognized and correlated with their volcanic sources (Campanian Volcanic Zone and Pantelleria volcano) and, when possible, with well-known and dated events or with widespread marker tephras. Using a combination of biostratigraphic, oxygen isotope, and tephrostratigraphic correlations, we develop a chronostratigraphy for the main climatic events and tephra layers in the core and pinpoint tephra markers for the climatic events comprised between GS 22 and GI 24 in the eastern Tyrrhenian Sea.