jueves, 23 de agosto de 2012

Drastic desertification: Researchers study Dead Sea climate past, finding dramatic results

Over the past 10,000 years, climate changes in the Dead Sea region have led to surprisingly swift desertification within mere decades. This is what researchers from the University of Bonn and their Israeli colleagues found when analyzing pollen in sediments and fluctuations in sea levels, calling the findings 'dramatic.'

The results are presented in the current issue of the international geosciences journal Quaternary Science Reviews, whose print version is published Aug. 23, 2012.

The Dead Sea, a salt sea without an outlet, lies over 400 meters below sea level. Tourists like its high salt content because it increases their buoyancy.  "For scientists, however, the Dead Sea is a popular archive that provides a diachronic view of its climate past," says Prof. Dr. Thomas Litt from the Steinmann-Institute for Geology, Mineralogy and Paleontology at the University of Bonn... ScienceDaily

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