Yellow River's Contribution to the Building of Yangtze Delta During the Last 500 Years - Evidence From Detrital Zircon U-Pb Geochronology

The Yangtze Delta (YD), as one of the world mega deltas, its formation process has long been the subject of research. Previous study has proposed a remote connection of the Yellow River (YR) to the building of the YD over the past 600–400 years. However, complex source-sink routing system of the YD sediment and lack of diagnostic provenance tools have hampered further understanding of this process. Inferred from detrital zircon U-Pb geochronology, this study revealed an increased and significant contribution of the reworked YR sediment to the YD (up to 26%) since ca. 500 a during the period YR shifted its lower courses and entered the southern Yellow Sea. This study not only highlights the impact of human activity on the formation of the world's large delta but also addresses the intricate interplay between neighboring deltas through marine dynamics, for example, alongshore and tidal currents.