Multi-proxy geochemical and sedimentological data from 20 short sediment cores collected along the Euphrates, Tigris, and Shatt al-Gharraf rivers in the lower Mesopotamian Plain, Iraq

This data release presents multi-proxy geochemical and sedimentological data from 20 short sediment cores (ranging 50–70 cm in depth) collected in 2003 along the Euphrates, Tigris, and Shatt al-Gharraf rivers in the Lower Mesopotamian Plain, Iraq. The dataset includes X-ray fluorescence (XRF) elemental abundances, particle size distributions, visible and near-infrared spectrophotometry data, and magnetic susceptibility measurements, along with line-scan images of the cores.

These cores were collected to investigate modern floodplain dynamics, sedimentary processes, and irrigation-related depositional signatures in an arid to semi-arid environment that has been shaped by millennia of river management, agriculture, and land use. The data are structured to support geomorphological, paleoenvironmental, and geoarchaeological research on sediment sources, hydrologic regimes, and stratigraphic changes across southern Iraq.

The data presented here were collected in 2024-2025 at the USGS Florence Bascom Geoscience Center (FBGC) in Reston, VA. Multi-sensor core logger data and line-scan images were collected using instrumentation housed in the Bascom Multi-Sensor Core Logger (BASCORE) Laboratory, and particle size distribution data were collected in the Bascom Laser Diffraction Sedimentology Laboratory.

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