Cosmogenic in situ 14C-10Be reveals abrupt Late Holocene soil loss in the Andean Altiplano

Abstract

The assessment of soil sustainability in prehistoric times requires comparing millennium-scale erosion rates with geological background rates. Here, the authors apply in situ cosmogenic 14C, 10Be, and 26Al to reveal rapid soil erosion on the Andean Altiplano in response to Late Holocene climate change and the onset of agropastoralism.