A record of Pleistocene climate from a stalactite, Nerja Cave, southern Spain

A study of stable isotopes (δ18O, δ13C) of a uranium-series dated aragonitic stalactite from Nerja Cave (Málaga, southern Spain) was carried out in order to determine the conditions of deposition in isotopic equilibrium and non-equilibrium. We obtained a record of climate change from 190 000 to 160 000 years ago. A series of carbon (δ13C) and oxygen (δ18O) isotopes analyses have been carried out in parallel to the stalactite growth axis. Sampling was done in each growth layer. A curve of the secular δ18O aragonite variations for the stalactite suggests cooler climate conditions in southern Spain for the period studied compared to the present.