Meteoric 10Be/9Be as a Proxy for Denudation and Uplift in the active Albanides orogenic belt

Cosmogenic nuclides are invaluable tools for quantifying denudation and uplift rates and thus decoding geological processes that act over different timescales and leave distinct imprints on the Earth’s surface. Among these, meteoric ¹⁰Be has emerged as a particularly powerful proxy due to its unique capability of being measured independently of lithology. Meteoric ¹⁰Be is an atmospheric flux tracer, and when normalized to stable ⁹Be, a trace element released by rocks during weathering, the ¹⁰Be/⁹Be ratio emerges. This ratio can be measured on small sample amounts and is independent of the presence of quartz which provides a benefit over the “sister” nuclide in situ ¹⁰Be that has been widely used in landscapes of felsic rocks.

The Albanides orogenic belt is a tectonically active region characterised by a remarkable lithological diversity, including carbonates, ophiolites, siliciclastics, metamorphics, and volcanic rocks distributed over short distances. In the Albanides´quartz-bearing sector, in situ ¹⁰Be-derived denudation rates were recently measured, but large areas of this belt remained unexplored due to lack of quartz. Meteoric ¹⁰Be/⁹Be -derived denudation rates fill this gap. When combined with geomorphic analyses to investigate uplift patterns in equilibrated river systems, results from both cosmogenic nuclides systems are consistent, and reveal significant spatial variability in denudation and uplift rates ranging from 0.1 to over 1.5 mm/yr. These results suggest that the Albanides are undergoing rapid landscape evolution, with rates and uplift mechanisms varying considerably across the belt. Our findings underscore the versatility of the meteoric ¹⁰Be/⁹Be method as a robust approach providing key information for quantifying erosional processes, sediment transport dynamics, landscape development and tectonic evolution. The consistency between the two datasets strengthens the reliability of the meteoric ¹⁰Be/⁹Be technique across regions with diverse geological compositions. Overall, our approach paves the way for future studies aimed at exploring the interplay between tectonics, climate, and surface processes using cosmogenic nuclides in complex lithological settings.