NOAA/WDS Paleoclimatology - Morocco Speleothem d18O and d13C Data during Marine Isotope Stage 5a

The Sahara Desert, one of today’s most inhospitable environments, has known periods of enhanced precipitation that supported pre-historic humans. However, the Green Sahara timing and moisture sources are not well-known due to limited paleoclimate information. Here, we present a multi-proxy (δ18O, δ13C, Δ17O, and trace elements) speleothem-based climate record from NW Africa. Our data document two Green Sahara periods during MIS5a and the Early to Mid-Holocene. Consistency with paleoclimate records across North Africa highlights the east-west geographical extent of the Green Sahara, whereas millennial-scale North Atlantic cooling (Heinrich) events consistently resulted in drier conditions. We demonstrate that an increase in westerly-originating winter precipitation during MIS5a resulted in favorable environmental conditions. The comparison of paleoclimate data with local archaeological sequences highlights the abrupt climate deterioration and the decline in human density in NW Africa during the MIS5-4 transition, which suggests climate-forced dispersals of populations, with possible implications for pathways into Eurasia.

本归档古气候学研究数据集可由美国国家海洋和大气管理局（National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, NOAA）下属的国家环境信息中心（National Centers for Environmental Information, NCEI）提供，其隶属于古气候学世界数据服务（World Data Service for Paleoclimatology, WDS）。该研究对应的NCEI分类类型为洞穴（Cave）。数据集涵盖分布于北非摩洛哥境内的洞穴沉积物（speleothems）相关参数，时间覆盖范围为距今87205至203个日历年（before present, BP）。如需了解参数与研究地点的详细信息，请查阅元数据（metadata）文档。使用本数据集时，请引用该研究。