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Long-term decrease in Asian monsoon rainfall and abrupt climate change events over the past 6,700 years

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS, 2021-07, Vol.118 (30), p.1 [Peer Reviewed Journal]

Copyright National Academy of Sciences Jul 27, 2021 ;info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess ;Copyright © 2021 the Author(s). Published by PNAS. 2021 ;ISSN: 0027-8424 ;ISSN: 1091-6490 ;EISSN: 1091-6490 ;DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2102007118 ;PMID: 34282014

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  • Title:
    Long-term decrease in Asian monsoon rainfall and abrupt climate change events over the past 6,700 years
  • Author: Yang, Bao ; Qin, Chun ; Bräuning, Achim ; Osborn, Timothy J. ; Trouet, Valerie ; Ljungqvist, Fredrik Charpentier ; Esper, Jan ; Schneider, Lea ; Grießinger, Jussi ; Büntgen, Ulf ; Rossi, Sergio ; Dong, Guanghui ; Yan, Mi ; Ning, Liang ; Wang, Jianglin ; Wang, Xiaofeng ; Wang, Suming ; Luterbacher, Jürg ; Cook, Edward R. ; Stenseth, Nils Chr
  • Subjects: Asian summer monsoon ; Biological Sciences ; Climate change ; Drying ; Holocene ; megadrought ; Migration ; Moisture availability ; Monsoons ; Neolithic ; Rainfall ; Social Sciences ; Stable isotopes ; Stone Age ; Tree rings ; Variability
  • Is Part Of: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS, 2021-07, Vol.118 (30), p.1
  • Description: Significance The variability of the Asian summer monsoon (ASM) is important for the functioning of ecological and societal systems at regional to continental scales, but the long-term evolution and interannual variability of this system is not well understood. Here, we present a stable isotope–based reconstruction of ASM variability covering 4680 BCE to 2011 CE. Superimposed on a gradual drying trend, a rapid drop in mean annual precipitation (>40%) toward persistently drier conditions occurred in ∼1675 BCE. This megadrought caused regional forest deterioration and enhanced aeolian activity affecting Chinese ecosystems. We argue that this abrupt aridification starting ∼2000 BCE triggered waves of human migration and societal transformation in northern China, which contributed to the alteration of spatial pattern of ancient civilizations. Asian summer monsoon (ASM) variability and its long-term ecological and societal impacts extending back to Neolithic times are poorly understood due to a lack of high-resolution climate proxy data. Here, we present a precisely dated and well-calibrated tree-ring stable isotope chronology from the Tibetan Plateau with 1- to 5-y resolution that reflects high- to low-frequency ASM variability from 4680 BCE to 2011 CE. Superimposed on a persistent drying trend since the mid-Holocene, a rapid decrease in moisture availability between ∼2000 and ∼1500 BCE caused a dry hydroclimatic regime from ∼1675 to ∼1185 BCE, with mean precipitation estimated at 42 ± 4% and 5 ± 2% lower than during the mid-Holocene and the instrumental period, respectively. This second-millennium–BCE megadrought marks the mid-to late Holocene transition, during which regional forests declined and enhanced aeolian activity affected northern Chinese ecosystems. We argue that this abrupt aridification starting ∼2000 BCE contributed to the shift of Neolithic cultures in northern China and likely triggered human migration and societal transformation.
  • Publisher: Washington: National Academy of Sciences
  • Language: English;Norwegian
  • Identifier: ISSN: 0027-8424
    ISSN: 1091-6490
    EISSN: 1091-6490
    DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2102007118
    PMID: 34282014
  • Source: Open Access: PubMed Central
    Geneva Foundation Free Medical Journals at publisher websites
    NORA Norwegian Open Research Archives
    SWEPUB Freely available online
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