Pleistocene drivers of Northwest African hydroclimate and vegetation

Nicholas A. O’Mara; Charlotte Skonieczny; David McGee; Gisela Winckler; Aloys J.-M. Bory; Louisa I. Bradtmiller; Bruno Malaizé; Pratigya J. Polissar

doi:10.1038/s41467-022-31120-x

Nature Communications (Jun 2022)

Pleistocene drivers of Northwest African hydroclimate and vegetation

Nicholas A. O’Mara,
Charlotte Skonieczny,
David McGee,
Gisela Winckler,
Aloys J.-M. Bory,
Louisa I. Bradtmiller,
Bruno Malaizé,
Pratigya J. Polissar

Affiliations

Nicholas A. O’Mara: Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University
Charlotte Skonieczny: Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, GEOPS
David McGee: Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Gisela Winckler: Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University
Aloys J.-M. Bory: Université de Lille, CNRS, Université Littoral Cote d’Opale, UMR 8187, LOG, Laboratoire d’Océanologie et de Géosciences
Louisa I. Bradtmiller: Department of Environmental Studies, Macalester College
Bruno Malaizé: UMR CNRS 5805 EPOC, Université Bordeaux I
Pratigya J. Polissar: Ocean Sciences Department, University of California

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-31120-x
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 13, no. 1
pp. 1 – 11

Abstract

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Plant-wax isotope and dust flux records reveal that the long-term variability of the Northwest African monsoon is controlled by tropical solar radiation gradients. Grasslands expand into the Sahara during strong monsoons, but the ultimate composition of the ecosystem is controlled by CO2.

Published in Nature Communications

ISSN: 2041-1723 (Online)
Publisher: Nature Portfolio
Country of publisher: United Kingdom
LCC subjects: Science
Website: https://www.nature.com/ncomms/

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