Magnitude of precipitation : evaporation changes in the Naivasha Basin (Kenya) during the last 150 kyrs
- We modeled the two most extreme highstands of Lake Naivasha during the last 175 k.y. to estimate potential precipitation/ evaporation changes in this basin. In a first step, the bathymetry of the paleolakes at f135 and 9 k.y. BP was reconstructed from sediment cores and surface outcrops. Second, we modeled the paleohydrologic budget during the highstands using a simplified coupled energy mass-balance model. Our results show that the hydrologic and hence the climate conditions at f135 and 9 k.y. BP were similar, but significantly different from today. The main difference is a f15% higher value in precipitation compared to the present. An adaptation and migration of vegetation in the cause of climate changes would result in a f30% increase in precipitation. The most likely cause for such a wetter climate at f135 and 9 k.y. BP is a more intense intertropical convergence and increased precipitation in East Africa.
Author details: | Andreas G. N. BergnerGND, Martin H. TrauthORCiDGND, Bodo BookhagenORCiDGND |
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Publication type: | Article |
Language: | English |
Year of first publication: | 2003 |
Publication year: | 2003 |
Release date: | 2017/03/24 |
Source: | Global and Planetary Change. - 36 (2003), 1-2, S. 117 - 135 |
Organizational units: | Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Fakultät / Institut für Geowissenschaften |