High-precision mass-spectrometric uranium-series dating of cave deposits and implications for palaeoclimate studies

CALCITE deposits in caves, known as speleothem, can provide valuable palaeoenvironmental information1–4. In particular, because speleothem are deposited only in air-filled caves, gaps in deposition in coastal caves record high-stands of sea level. Here we report the use of isotope-dilution mass spectrometry to date speleothem by the uranium-series method. The use of mass spectrometry in uranium-series dating was first applied to corals5, and …