<p>I have read in several places that there is evidence in the geologic record (rocks and ice cores) of cataclysmic events that regularly occur 12 ka apart.</p>
<p>There is a term I only barely understand called “punctuated aggradational* cycles” where there is a recurring thin layer indicating a radical but short lived event, and 12 ka worth of regular events/normal living, followed by the next short lived radical event right on time — rinse and repeat.</p>
<p>So is there actually evidence of recurring cyclical cataclysmic events occurring regularly in the geologic record or not?</p>
<p>Asking as a layman and looking for answers “even I can understand”.</p>
<p>I started here:  <a href="https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/PA001i004p00417" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/PA001i004p00417</a> And another: <a href="https://journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/628978?journalCode=jg" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/628978?journalCode=jg</a></p>
<p>More:  <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=punctuated+aggradational+cycles" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.google.com/search?q=punctuated+aggradational+cycles</a></p>
<p>*edit: typo</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-06-22T00:52:01.483Z
Could you provide links to a couple places that make this claim?
Mark
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-06-24T16:14:20.960Z
Maybe a different phrase? "Punctuated aggregation cycles" doesn't bring up anything in Google. The closest thing is some "doom is coming" YouTube video that reinterprets the regional Younger Dryas black mats from ~12ka years ago as being global and from some non-organic source and assumes the black mat layers repeated as regular intervals.
jeffronicus
CC BY-SA 4.0
2024-06-28T04:40:37.947Z
Here's one example:  https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/PA001i004p00417

And another:   https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/628978?journalCode=jg  

I misspelled my question originally.  It's punctuated aggradational cycles.     I'm a little surprised nobody caught that -- I guess it really is a one-off weird term. 

https://www.google.com/search?q=punctuated+aggradational+cycles
Chubster
<earth-history><structural-geology>
Cyclic cataclysmic events 12 000 years apart
Chubster
# Cyclic cataclysmic events 12 000 years apart

(Asked by: username_0 on 2024-06-21)

I have read in several places that there is evidence in the geologic record (rocks and ice cores) of cataclysmic events that regularly occur 12 ka apart.

There is a term I only barely understand called “punctuated aggradational\* cycles” where there is a recurring thin layer indicating a radical but short lived event, and 12 ka worth of regular events/normal living, followed by the next short lived radical event right on time — rinse and repeat.

So is there actually evidence of recurring cyclical cataclysmic events occurring regularly in the geologic record or not?

Asking as a layman and looking for answers “even I can understand”.

I started here: <https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/PA001i004p00417> And another: <https://journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/628978?journalCode=jg>

More: <https://www.google.com/search?q=punctuated+aggradational+cycles>

\*edit: typo

**Tags:** earth-history, structural-geology

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Could you provide links to a couple places that make this claim?  
> **username_2**: Maybe a different phrase? "Punctuated aggregation cycles" doesn't bring up anything in Google. The closest thing is some "doom is coming" YouTube video that reinterprets the regional Younger Dryas black mats from ~12ka years ago as being global and from some non-organic source and assumes the black mat layers repeated as regular intervals.  
> **username_0**: Here's one example:  https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/PA001i004p00417  And another:   https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/628978?journalCode=jg    I misspelled my question originally.  It's punctuated aggradational cycles.     I'm a little surprised nobody caught that -- I guess it really is a one-off weird term.   https://www.google.com/search?q=punctuated+aggradational+cycles  

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