Tephrochronology of the Toba tuffs: four primary glass populations define the 75‐ka Youngest Toba Tuff, northern Sumatra, Indonesia

Abstract

Four primary glass populations, well defined by their Sr, Ba and Y concentrations, occur in the Youngest Toba Tuff (YTT), which was deposited during a supereruption of the Toba caldera complex in northern Sumatra 75 ka. Average concentrations of major and trace elements indicate a coherent, systematic variation of glass composition across populations. No clear pattern in the areal distribution of these four glass groups can be discerned. The multiple glass populations of the YTT easily distinguish it from the single homogeneous glass population of the Middle Toba Tuff (∼500 ka), as represented by its basal vitrophyre, and that of the Oldest Toba Tuff (∼800 ka), as represented by ash Layer D at the Ocean Drilling Program site 758 in the Indian Ocean.

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