Dataset for 'Sedimentary ¹⁷O-nitrate constraints on Phanerozoic dry-humid degrees and alternations in South China' in Geophysical Research Letters

Climate changes played a pivotal role in influencing the biological evolution of South China in the Phanerozoic, yet exact dry-humid degrees and alternation patterns remain unconstrained in the geological period of South China. This work observed high contents and ¹⁷O anomalies of nitrate in Cambrian black shale that was derived from atmospheric deposition due to dry climates occurred after the tectonic uplift. Combining isotopic and sedimentological records with modeling methods, we quantified the corresponding aridity degree and reconstructed its historical variations in South China, which clarified three significant dry-to-humid climate alternations in the Phanerozoic. The results are useful for better understanding geological climate dynamics and its interactions with biological and geological events