Lifting the veil on speleothem sampling

Figure 1: Speleothem samples taken in the framework of the Past4Future project. A) Core drilling of the RSM 17 stalagmite in the Remouchamps Cave, Belgium. The photo shows the drilling device used and the base of the stalagmite. B) Retrieval of a speleothem core. C) The stalagmite taken from Clamouse Cave, France. Photos: E. Zaremba, S. Verheyden, and D. Genty. During the last decade, speleothem studies have enhanced our understanding of the evolution of continental climate thanks to the acquisition of high-resolution welldated time-series (Cruz et al. 2005; Drysdale et al. 2009; Fleitmann et al. 2009; Genty et al. 2003; Genty et al. this issue; Wang et al. 2008). Speleothems can be precisely dated to up to 600 ka BP with the Uranium-Thorium method and potentially even further back in time if datable with the Uranium-Lead method.