Investigation of late holocene (1500 CE-1500 BCE) climate records in the Southwestern Türkiye by speleothem records

In this thesis study, a stalagmite collected from Molla Deliği Cave located in Antalya in SW Türkiye was used to investigate the past climate traces throughout the late Holocene period ( 1500 CE–1500 BCE). To provide highly resolved Proxy records, a seies of geochemical analysis applied on stalagmite Mol-2. For dating analysis, Uranium-series dating method was applied. To determine the past hydrological conditions, stable isotope (δ18O and δ13C) measurements were performed. In total, there dating measurements and 211 stable isotope analyses were completed on stalagmite Mol-2, According to the analytical applications, stalagmite Mol-2 deposited between 1.728±0.034 and 3.578±0.056 years BP. Stable isotope measurements show that δ13C values range from -7.12‰ to -9.28‰, and the δ18O varies between -4.56‰ ile -5.83‰. The dating mesaurements show that stalagmite Mol-2 reflects thee climatic variations during the late Holocene. The δ13C of stalagmite Mol-2 recorded changes in the effective moisture, while δ18O values reflect changes in the precipitation amount. Finally, all proxy records of stalagmite Mol-2 have been interpreted as reliable paleoclimate record for Antalya region. KEYWORDS: Antalya, Stalagmite, Stable Isotope, SW Türkiye, Late Holocene, Paleoclimate, Stalactite, Uranium series