Cyclostratigraphy

Cyclostratigraphy is a subdiscipline of stratigraphy that studies astronomically forced climate cycles within sedimentary successions.

Varied insolation directly influences Earth's climate, and changes in precipitation and weathering are revealed in the sedimentary record.

[1] Indicators of these cycles in sediments include rock magnetism, geochemistry, biological composition, and physical features like color and facies changes.

[3] Cyclostratigraphic studies of rock records can lead to accurate dating of events in the geological past, to increase understanding of cause and consequences of Earth's (climate) history, and to better understand controls on depositional mechanisms of sediments and the behaviour of sedimentary systems.

Using radioisotope dating to set parameters for time scales introduces a degree of uncertainty.

The nature of sediments can vary in a cyclic fashion, and these cycles can be displayed in the sedimentary record - here visible in the colouration and resistance of strata
Milankovitch variations, solar forcing, and glacial cycles. Image by Robert A. Rohde, under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license.