Quaternary loesses, loess-like sediments, soils and climate change in Iran

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The author meticulously examines sediment-soil sections in Iran to reconstruct Middle to Upper Quaternary climate change and landscape evolution. After a thorough review of loess occurrences in Iran and surrounding regions, the study focuses on the soil sedimentology and pedology of loess reference sections in the Caspian lowlands and loess-like sediments in the Persepolis Basin. These areas, characterized by sub-humid to semi-arid climates, serve as ideal sites for studying past climate changes and their impacts on sediment deposition and soil formation. The analyses include detailed profile descriptions alongside extensive micromorphological, geochemical, and mineralogical data. By employing pedostratigraphic correlations and systematic luminescence and radiocarbon dating, a new chronostratigraphic framework of sediment deposition and soil formation in Iran is established. This framework is then used to connect the studied sections with sediment-soil sequences from West and Central Asia and Eastern Europe. The synthesis chapter discusses how paleoclimatic conditions influence loess accumulation, soil formation, and geomorphodynamics, while also considering human impacts on these settings. This work is valuable for pedologists, paleopedologists, and researchers interested in loess, soils, and the climatic factors influencing their formation during the Quaternary.