Search Results (73)

Glacial ice cores are evidence of past environmental conditions through gases and particulate matter trapped within the drilled material. The Central Andes in the South American region are highly sensitive to climate changes; a long record of temperature and precipitation variability can be found in relation to massive ice caps. Available oxygen isotope data from three glacial ice cores from Nevados Sajama, Huascaran and Illimani (Peru and Bolivia) drilled over the last decades in the Central Andes are revisited to investigate climate variability over the past seven millennia, a period characterized globally by remarkable climatic stability. The analysis revealed statistically significant millennial- and centennial-scale periodicities in the isotope records ranging from centennial to millennial timescales. These cycles have periods of 1.3, 0.87, 0.67, 0.46, and 0.25 kiloyears (ka). A series of regional temperature minima and maxima are also identified. This variability in the Andean climate during the mid and late Holocene is interpreted as being strongly controlled by changes in solar activity, in particular, the forcing of “grand solar minima” is recognized. Likewise, less frequent climate changes could be correlated with Bond cycles and increased or decreased activity of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (also known as AMOC or the thermohaline), among other climate forcings such as volcanic activity. Full article

Tularemia is a plague-like, potentially fatal zoonosis caused by the coccobacillus Francisella tularensis. It was discovered at the beginning of the last century in the United States and was soon recognized in Japan and in the former Soviet Union as the cause of clinical conditions that had been known for one and two centuries, respectively. More than 250 animal species are susceptible to infection, with rodents and lagomorphs serving as key reservoirs, and several vectors may transmit the disease, mainly ticks and mosquitoes. Humans are incidental hosts and are infected primarily by two F. tularensis subspecies, tularensis and holarctica: the former is more severe and is found almost exclusively in North America, whereas the latter is distributed throughout the Northern Hemisphere, mainly in Europe and Asia. Tularemia is highly infectious; therefore, diagnostic cultures should be handled in biosafety level 3 laboratories. Nevertheless, interhuman transmission is exceedingly rare. Although tularemia is relatively uncommon, it shows a re-emerging pattern at the global level, particularly in Europe. As with plague, mitigation may be more effectively achieved through a One Health approach. Neither approved vaccines nor therapeutic antibodies are currently available, whereas aminoglycoside, tetracycline, and quinolone antibiotics are effective. Owing to its high infectivity, its ease of transmission by inhalation, its clinical severity, with a prolonged and debilitating course, and its potential lethality, F. tularensis has long been considered a potential biological weapon, particularly if antibiotic-resistant strains were used. Although natural antibiotic resistance has not been described to date, research programs aimed at obtaining resistant strains have been conducted. It has been suggested that the disease was already present in the Middle East during the second millennium BC; should this hypothesis be confirmed by paleogenomic studies, plague and tularemia would have coexisted for more than three millennia, with plague masking the less severe tularemia. Many challenges related to tularemia are still unresolved. Full article

This paper contains an overview of the human colonisation of Australasia and Oceania over the last 65,000 years, and highlights the resultant diversity of settlement types, place and cultural landscape formations, and architectural solutions, but simultaneously gives attention to the long-term retention of particular traditions throughout the study region. The time, geographic and multi-cultural scales are thus vast, implying this is a study in the category of ‘deep history’. However, the author has drawn from his editing of the regional volume of ‘Australasia and Oceania,’ for the 2nd edition of the Encyclopaedia of Vernacular Architecture of the World, or EVAW 2, containing some 200 contributions on this region. Two migratory events are explored. The first is that of Aboriginal people into Australia some 65,000 years ago. The second is the Austronesian migrations into the Pacific Ocean from 5000 to 1500 BP. Despite millennia of cultural, environmental, climatic, economic and warfare disruptions, a series of continuities of tradition are identified and analysed in a limited manner due to the brevity of the paper. However, the paper provides a significant contribution in making such a broad-scale holistic overview of the pattern languages of building traditions that link communities in Oceania and Australasia arising from past migrations and drawing on multi-disciplinary sources. Full article

A multiproxy study of a new Pleistocene locality at Ivantzevo, Moscow Region, was conducted to reconstruct paleoenvironments from the Middle Pleistocene to the Last Pleniglacial. Lacustrine deposits and peat accumulated in a wetland within a fluvioglacial depression formed during the Dnieper–Moscow glaciation. Silts and clays were deposited during MIS 7 and the Moscow (Saale) Glaciation (MIS 6), while peat accumulation began in the Mikulino (Eemian) (MIS 5e). The wetland persisted for approximately fifty millennia, until the Middle Valdai (Weichselian). Interglacial peat deposits contain well-preserved pollen and macrofossils, and the recovered fossil insect assemblage is unique for European Russia. Chronology was established using multiple OSL and ²³⁰Th/U dates, combined with pollen-based correlations to type sections north and west of the region. The reconstructed ecosystem dynamics are divided into eleven stages. The transition from the last interglacial to the second stadial of the Valdai involved seven phases: (1) expansion of boreal spruce forest, (2) spread of thermophilic broad-leaved forests with hazel, (3) development of open forest–steppe ecosystems with groves of deciduous trees, (4) re-establishment of forest cover with birch and, later, mixed pine, spruce, and birch forests, (5) emergence of cold steppe combined with shrub-dominated tundra, (6) return of boreal spruce forest, and (7) abrupt replacement of forest by cold steppe and shrub tundra. Climatic reconstructions indicate that these ecosystem dynamics closely corresponded to changes in precipitation and aridity. Full article

Background/Objectives: This study explores the evolution and morphology of the human mandible, focusing on recent changes and adaptations over the last 2000 years. It aims to examine how functional, genetic, and environmental factors influence mandibular size, shape, and sexual dimorphism by analyzing key anatomical landmarks—the horizontal ramus (HR), ascending ramus (AR), and mandibular angle (MA). Methods: A retrospective approach was employed using computed tomography (CT) scans of 39 mandibular samples from various historical periods, ranging from the Roman Imperial Age to the present day. Imaging was conducted using a 64-slice multislice computed tomography (MSCT) scanner, and the resulting data were processed to generate detailed 3D reconstructions for morphological assessment. Results: The analysis reveals that present-day samples exhibit significantly less variation in AR and MA compared to archaeological specimens, suggesting a trend of gracilization over time. Statistically significant differences were found in MA, likely influenced by environmental, dietary, and cultural factors. Correlation analysis showed moderate to weak relationships between AR, HR, and MA across sample groups, with significant sexual dimorphism in AR within the archaeological sample. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) further supported these findings, demonstrating a clear distinction between gracile modern mandibles and more robust ancient ones. Conclusions: These findings provide insights into the evolutionary trajectory of the human mandible, underscoring the influence of dietary and cultural shifts on mandibular structure over the past two millennia. Full article

Understanding morphological descriptions of plants documented by ancient peoples over 1000 years ago and identifying the species they described are critical for reconstructing the natural geographic distribution of plant taxa, tracking taxonomic variations, and inferring historical climate dynamics. Analyzing shifts in plant communities and climatic conditions during this period is essential to unravel the interplay among floristic composition, climate fluctuations, and anthropogenic impacts. However, research in this field remains limited, with greater emphasis placed on plant taxa from hundreds of millions of years ago. Investigations into flora and climate during the last two millennia are sparse, and pre-millennial climatic conditions remain poorly characterized. In this study, a historical text written 1475 years ago was analyzed to compile plant names and morphological features, followed by taxonomic identification. The research identified three gymnosperm species (one in Pinaceae, two in Cupressaceae), 1 Tamaricaceae species (dicotyledon), and 19 dicotyledon species. However, three plant groups could only be identified at the genus level. Using textual analysis and woody plant coexistence methods, the climate of 1475 years ago in western Henan Province, located in the middle-lower Yellow River basin in East Asia, was reconstructed. Results indicate that the mean temperature of the coldest month (MTCM) was approximately 1.3 °C higher than modern values. In comparison, the mean temperature of the warmest month (MTWM) and mean annual temperature (MAT) were lower than present-day levels. This suggests slightly cooler overall conditions with milder seasonal extremes in ancient Luoyang—a finding supported by contemporaneous studies. Furthermore, annual precipitation (AP), precipitation of the warmest quarter (PWQ), and precipitation of the coldest quarter (PCQ) in the Luoyang region 1475 years ago exceeded modern measurements, despite the area’s monsoonal climate. This suggests significantly higher atmospheric moisture content in ancient air masses compared to today. This study provides floristic and climatic baseline data for advancing our understanding of global climate variability at millennial scales. Full article

The “Jiugao 酒誥” chapter of the Shangshu 尚書 is a proclamation on wine ethics, ordered by the Duke of Zhou for Kangshu to disseminate among the people. It marks the earliest system of laws and regulations concerning wine usage in Chinese history. In this chapter, the Duke of Zhou analyzed drinking from the perspectives of ethical philosophy and political dynamics, closely associating it with ethical codes, moral values, and political order. He criticized King Zhou of Shang for “drunkenness leading to national ruin” and detailed three ethical codes to regulate drinking practices. The Duke of Zhou established the ethical foundation of the Western Zhou Dynasty, incorporating the theory of wine virtue, and constructed its comprehensive political order. This exerted a profoundly lasting impact on Confucius and later Confucian scholars concerning the mandate of heaven and political thought, forming the basis of China’s political and cultural ethos for millennia. Full article

A comprehensive database of paleo vegetation from Kundala Lake, Kerala, was used for a palynological study in a 120 cm sedimentary profile from Kundala Lake (1700 mamsl), Palni Hills, to understand the climate and vegetation equilibrium during the last four millennia. On the basis of pollen assemblage and cluster analysis, a relatively high percentage of evergreen vegetation between 4.3 and 3.4 ka (phase I) was inferred to represent the relicts of middle Holocene vegetation during a warmer climate. Subsequently, in the periods of 3.4–2.3 ka (phase II) and 2.3–0.87 ka (phase III), herbs/shrubs dominated. A relative increase in the percentage of arboreals along with herbaceous taxa was again observed from 0.87 to 0.12 ka (phase IV). Later, in phase V (from 1820 AD to present), few new plant taxa were recorded. On the basis of the ‘coexistence approach’, the Mean Annual Temperature (MAT) was inferred to be 22 °C, 15 °C, 15 °C, 20 °C and 22 °C during phases I to V, respectively. The Mean Annual Precipitation (MAP)was 2660 ± 3700 mm from ~4.3 to 0.12 ka; however, it decreased to ~1750 mm between 3.4 and 2.3 ka. However, pollen evidence reveals short-term cooler spells during the 16/17th century AD, which is in concordance with the globally recorded cooler and arid climate that began sometime from ~5.0 to 4.0 ka. A thematic digital elevation map of vegetation reconstructed for the years 2005 and 2018 shows a reduction in evergreen plants and water bodies in the vicinity of Kundala Lake, which was correlated with the results of palynological studies and Indian meteorological data for the last ~100 years in the region. Full article

Understanding the past dynamics of vegetation in response to climate change is crucial for predicting future ecological outcomes. This study has two primary objectives: (1) to reconstruct the vegetation history of the coastal region around Lake Lilaste in Central Latvia during the Holocene and (2) to assess the impacts of climate change on forest composition through the analysis of pollen data and radiocarbon dating. The results indicate that dominant tree species, particularly pine (Pinus), have shown remarkable resilience despite significant climate fluctuations. Pine’s adaptation to the sandy, mineral-poor soils surrounding the lake likely underpins its sustained dominance, while the influence of climate change on overall tree biomass is more notable. Our results suggest that vegetation may be more susceptible to future climate variability, yet the region’s geological and soil conditions continue to favor pine, birch (Betula), and alder (Alnus) populations. While human activities have influenced the region during the last millennia, their impact has been more pronounced in areas further from the lake. This study underlines the importance of long-term forest dynamics and emphasizes that the soil and geological and geographical setting must be considered for climate change assessments. Full article

Campi Flegrei (Southern Italy) is the largest volcanic caldera in Europe and one of the most densely inhabited all over the world. The Campi Flegrei region has been populated for millennia and has been well known for the episodic periods of uplift, subsidence and seismicity since Roman times. Nevertheless, also due to the long time that has passed since the last eruption, the population’s awareness of living in a high-risk area is quite limited. Furthermore, spatial and emergency planning in this area has been long neglected and often ineffective. Hence, following a brief description of the most recent volcanic events occurred in Campi Flegrei, this paper provides an overview of the emergency and spatial plans and of the risk communication activities so far implemented. Then, the results of a survey carried out in the last year highlight the main gaps in hazard and risk awareness as well as in the knowledge of the Disaster Risk Management (DRM) system. A comparison of the survey’s outcomes with those of a previous one, published in 2013, allows for the understanding if residents’ risk perception and awareness have changed due to the still on-going unrest phase. The outcomes of the survey may be useful to drive local authorities towards more integrated policies to improve resilience to disasters and implement holistic DRM at all levels, in line with goal 11, target 11.9 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Full article

The Storegga slide tsunami (SST) at ca. 8100 ± 100–250 cal BP is known to be the largest tsunami that affected the North Sea during the entire Holocene. Geological traces of tsunami landfall were discovered along the coasts of Norway, Scotland, England, Denmark, the Faroes and Shetland Islands. So far, the German North Sea coast has been considered as being well protected due to the wide continental shelf and predominant shallow water depths, both assumed to dissipate tsunami wave energy significantly, thus hindering SST propagation dynamics. The objective of our research was to clarify if the SST reached the German Bight and if corresponding sediment markers can be found. Our research was based on the in-depth investigation of a 5 m long section of the research core Garding-2 from Eiderstedt Peninsula near Garding in North Frisia known from a previous study. For this, we newly recovered sediment core Garding-2A at exactly the same coring location as core Garding-2. Additionally, high-resolution Direct Push sensing data were collected to gain undisturbed stratigraphic information. Multi-proxy analyses of sediment material (grain size, geochemical, geochronological and microfaunal data) were carried out to reconstruct palaeoenvironmental and palaeogeographical conditions. We identified a high-energy event layer with sedimentological (e.g., erosional unconformity, rip-up clasts, fining-upward), microfaunal (e.g., strongly mixed foraminiferal assemblage) and other features typical of tsunami influence and identical in age with the SST, dated to ca. 8.15 ka cal BP. The event layer was deposited at or maximum ca. 1–1.5 m below the local contemporary relative sea level and several tens of kilometers inland from the coastline within the palaeo-Eider estuarine system beyond the reach of storm surges. Tsunami facies and geochronological data correspond well with SST signatures identified on the nearby island of Rømø. SST candidate deposits identified at Garding represent the southernmost indications of this event in the southeastern North Sea. They give evidence, for the first time, of high-energy tsunami landfall along the German North Sea coast and tsunami impact related to the Storegga slide. SST deposits seem to have been subsequently reworked and redeposited over centuries until the site was affected by the Holocene marine transgression around 7 ka cal BP (7.3–6.5 ka cal BP). Moreover, the transgression initiated energetically and ecologically stable shallow marine conditions within an Eider-related tidal channel, lasting several millennia. It is suggested that the SST was not essentially weakened across the shallow continental shelf of the North Sea, but rather caused tsunami run-up of several meters (Rømø Island) or largely intruded estuarine systems tens of kilometers inland (North Frisia, this study). We, therefore, assume that the southern North Sea coast was generally affected by the SST but sedimentary signals have not yet been identified or have been misinterpreted. Our findings suggest that the German North Sea coast is not protected from tsunami events, as assumed so far, but that tsunamis are also a phenomenon in this region. Full article

Based on an examination of the outlooks and practices held by past and present Negev desert viticulturists vis-à-vis their environs, the article offers insights into how the wine sector can bolster its response to current climate adversity. The discussion fuses bio-archaeological research on the evolution of ancient grape cultivars (Vitis vinifera) in the Negev with an extensive ethnographic inquiry into the ongoing wine revival in arid southern Israel. Ancient DNA analysis of relic grape material led to the identification of an historical Negev viticulture lineage. The findings provide a temporal framework for contextualizing tphe interrelated anthropological data obtained on contemporary dryland viticulturalists and wine makers in Israel. Since the climate in the Negev has remained relatively stable over the last several millennia, it makes for an apt point of comparison via which to gauge the outlooks held by both historical and modern viticulturalists towards the local landscape. We suggest enacting two evidence-based adjustments to counter ecological instabilities: the holistic revival and applied renewal of historical cultivars, and the attendant agronomic routines that sustained their growth in the past. A more nuanced understanding of the unique terroir arid viticulturalists are operating in, together with the learned incorporation of the hardy genetic traits of age-old cultivars, will benefit wine growers to attune their responses to the array of challenges wrought by climate change on the wine industry. It is therefore our hope that the research methodologies and heritage-oriented horticultural perspectives we present in this paper will prove beneficial to broader wine growing regions (pax-Mediterranean and beyond) who are fortunate to likewise possess their own rich viticultural histories and lineages. Full article

Major explosive volcanic eruptions impact the climate by altering the radiative balance of the atmosphere and through feedback mechanisms in the climate system. The extent of the impact depends on the magnitude (aerosol mass loading) and the number or frequency of such eruptions. Multiple Antarctica ice core records of past volcanic eruptions reveal that the number (5) of major eruptions (volcanic sulfate deposition flux greater than 10 kg km⁻²) was the highest in the 13th century over the last two millennia. Signals of four of the five eruptions are dated to the second half of the century, indicating consecutive major eruptions capable of causing sustained climate impact via known feedback processes. The fact that signals of four corresponding eruptions have been found in a Greenland ice core indicates that four of the five 13th century eruptions were probably by volcanoes in the low latitudes (between 20° N and 20° S) with substantial aerosol mass loading. These eruptions in the low latitudes likely exerted the strongest volcanic impact on climate in the last two millennia. Full article

(1) Introduction: The subject of the present study concerns the analysis of the existence and long time evolution of the solar ~200 yr (de Vries/Suess) and ~2400 yr (Hallstadt) cycles during the recent part of the Wurm ice epoch and the Holocene, as well as their forcing on the regional East European climate during the last two calendar millennia. The results obtained here are compared with those from our previous studies, as well as with the results obtained by other authors and with other types of data. A possible scenario of solar activity changes during the 21st century, as well as different possible mechanisms of solar–climatic relationships, is discussed. (2) Data and methods: Two types of indirect (historical) data series for solar activity were used: (a) the international radiocarbon tree ring series (INTCAL13) for the last 13,900 years; (b) the Schove series of the calendar years of minima and maxima and the magnitudes of 156 quasi 11 yr sunspot Schwabe–Wolf cycles since 296 AD and up to the sunspot cycle with number 24 (SC24) in the Zurich series; (c) manuscript messages about extreme meteorological and climatic events (Danube and Black Sea near-coast water freezing), extreme summer droughts, etc., in Bulgaria and adjacent territories since 296 and up to 1899 AD, when the Bulgarian meteorological dataset was started. A time series analysis and χ²-test were used. (3) Results and analysis: The amplitude modulation of the 200 yr solar cycle by the 2400 yr (Hallstadt) cycle was confirmed. Two groups of extremely cold winters (ECWs) during the last ~1700 years were established. Both groups without exclusion are concentrated near 11 yr sunspot cycle extremes. The number of ECWs near sunspot cycle minima is about 2 times greater than that of ECWs near sunspot cycle maxima. This result is in agreement with our earlier studies for the instrumental epoch since 1899 AD. The driest “spring-summer-early autumn” seasons in Bulgaria and adjacent territories occur near the initial and middle phases of the grand solar minima of the Oort–Dalton type, which relate to the downward phases and minima of the 200 yr Suess cycle. (4) Discussion: The above results confirm the effect of the Sun’s forcing on climate. However, it cannot be explained by the standard hypothesis for total solar irradiation (TSI) variations. That is why another hypothesis is suggested by the author. The mechanism considered by Svensmark for galactic cosmic ray (GCR) forcing on aerosol nuclei was taken into account. However, in the hypothesis suggested here, the forcing of solar X-ray flux changes (including solar flares) on the low ionosphere (the D-layer) and following interactions with the Earth’s lithosphere due to the terrestrial electric current systems play a key role for aerosol nuclei and cloud generation and dynamics during sunspot maxima epochs. The GCR flux maximum absorption layer at heights of 35–40 km replaces the ionosphere D-layer role during the sunspot minima epochs. Full article

The analysis of tephra layers in maar lake sediments of the Eifel shows 14 well-visible tephra during the last glacial cycle from the Holocene to the Eemian (0–130,000 yr b2k). These tephra were analyzed for their petrographic composition, which allows us to connect several tephra to eruption sites. All tephra were dated by application of the ELSA-20 chronology, developed using the late Pleistocene infilled maar lake of Auel and the Holocene lake Holzmaar (0–60,000 yr b2k). We extend the ELSA-20 chronology with this paper for the millennia of 60,000–130,000 yr b2k (ELSA-23 chronology), which is based on the infilled maar lake records from Dehner, Hoher List, and Jungferweiher. The evaluation of the tephra from the entire last glacial cycle shows that all 14 tephra were close to interstadial warming of the North Atlantic sea surface temperatures. In particular, phreatomagmatic maar eruptions were systematically associated with Heinrich events or C-events. These events represent times of warming of the Southern Hemisphere, global sea level rise, and CO₂ increase, which predate the abrupt interstadial warming events of the Northern Hemisphere. This synchroneity indicates a physical relationship between endogenic and exogenic processes. Changes in the lithospheric stress field in response to changes in continental ice loads have already been suggested as a potential candidate to explain the exogenic forcing of endogenic processes. The chronology of volcanic activity in the Eifel demonstrates that intraplate mantle plumes are also affected by the exogenic forcing of endogenic processes. Full article