Repository logo
 

Ecological and societal effects of Central Asian streamflow variation over the past eight centuries

Simple item page
cam.issuedOnline2022-03-30
dc.contributor.authorChen, F
dc.contributor.authorYuan, Y
dc.contributor.authorTrouet, V
dc.contributor.authorBüntgen, U
dc.contributor.authorEsper, J
dc.contributor.authorChen, F
dc.contributor.authorYu, S
dc.contributor.authorShen, M
dc.contributor.authorZhang, R
dc.contributor.authorShang, H
dc.contributor.authorChen, Y
dc.contributor.authorZhang, H
dc.contributor.orcidChen, F [0000-0002-2551-8653]
dc.contributor.orcidTrouet, V [0000-0002-2683-8704]
dc.date.accessioned2022-03-31T16:28:03Z
dc.date.available2022-03-31T16:28:03Z
dc.date.issued2022
dc.date.submitted2021-04-06
dc.date.updated2022-03-31T16:28:03Z
dc.description.abstract<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>Understanding changes in water availability is critical for Central Asia; however, long streamflow reconstructions extending beyond the period of instrumental gauge measurements are largely missing. Here, we present a 785-year-long streamflow reconstruction from spruce tree rings from the Tien Shan Mountains. Although an absolute causal relationship can not be established, relatively high streamflow rates coincided roughly with the period of Mongol expansion from 1225 to 1260 CE and the rise of the Timurid Empire from 1361 to 1400 CE. Since overall wetter conditions were further found during the Zunghar Khanate period 1693–1705 CE, we argue that phases of streamflow surplus likely promoted oasis and grassland productivity, which was an important factor for the rise of inner Eurasian steppe empires. Moreover, we suggest that the streamflow variation might be critical for plague outbreaks in Central Asia, and propose several explanations for possible links with Europe’s repeated Black Death pandemics. We demonstrate that 20th-century low streamflow is unprecedented in the past eight centuries and exacerbated the Aral Sea crisis, which is one of the most staggering ecological disasters of the twentieth century.</jats:p>
dc.identifier.doi10.17863/CAM.82995
dc.identifier.eissn2397-3722
dc.identifier.issn2397-3722
dc.identifier.others41612-022-00239-5
dc.identifier.other239
dc.identifier.urihttps://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/335564
dc.languageen
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisherSpringer Science and Business Media LLC
dc.publisher.urlhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41612-022-00239-5
dc.subject37 Earth Sciences
dc.subject3709 Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience
dc.titleEcological and societal effects of Central Asian streamflow variation over the past eight centuries
dc.typeArticle
dcterms.dateAccepted2022-02-09
prism.issueIdentifier1
prism.publicationNamenpj Climate and Atmospheric Science
prism.volume5
pubs.funder-project-idNational Science Foundation of China | National Natural Science Foundation of China-Yunnan Joint Fund (NSFC-Yunnan Joint Fund) (U1803341)
rioxxterms.licenseref.urihttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
rioxxterms.versionVoR
rioxxterms.versionofrecord10.1038/s41612-022-00239-5

Files

Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
41612_2022_Article_239_nlm.xml
Size:
86.5 KB
Format:
Extensible Markup Language
Description:
Bibliographic metadata
Licence
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Download
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
additional-files.zip
Size:
21.47 KB
Format:
ZIP file
Description:
Supporting information
Licence
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Download
Thumbnail Image
Name:
41612_2022_239_MOESM1_ESM.pdf
Size:
760.08 KB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Published version
Licence
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Download
Thumbnail Image
Name:
41612_2022_Article_239.pdf
Size:
3.93 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Published version
Licence
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Download

Collections

Jisc Publications Router