A 2400 yr Mesoamerican rainfall reconstruction links climate and cultural change

Research Article| March 01, 2012 A 2400 yr Mesoamerican rainfall reconstruction links climate and cultural change Matthew S. Lachniet; Matthew S. Lachniet 1Department of Geoscience, University of Nevada−Las Vegas, 4505 Maryland Parkway, Las Vegas, Nevada 89154, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Juan Pablo Bernal; Juan Pablo Bernal 2Centro de Geociencias, UNAM Campus Juriquilla, Boulevard Juriquilla 3001, Juriquilla, Querétaro 76230, Mexico Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Yemane Asmerom; Yemane Asmerom 3Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of New Mexico, 200 Yale Boulevard NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Victor Polyak; Victor Polyak 3Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of New Mexico, 200 Yale Boulevard NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Dolores Piperno Dolores Piperno 4Program in Human Ecology and Archaeobiology, Department of Anthropology, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, D.C. 20004, USA and Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Panama Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Matthew S. Lachniet 1Department of Geoscience, University of Nevada−Las Vegas, 4505 Maryland Parkway, Las Vegas, Nevada 89154, USA Juan Pablo Bernal 2Centro de Geociencias, UNAM Campus Juriquilla, Boulevard Juriquilla 3001, Juriquilla, Querétaro 76230, Mexico Yemane Asmerom 3Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of New Mexico, 200 Yale Boulevard NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131, USA Victor Polyak 3Department of Earth and Planetary Science, University of New Mexico, 200 Yale Boulevard NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico 87131, USA Dolores Piperno 4Program in Human Ecology and Archaeobiology, Department of Anthropology, Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, Washington, D.C. 20004, USA and Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Panama *E-mails: matthew.lachniet@unlv.edu; jpbernal@geociencias.unam.mx; asmerom@unm.edu. Publisher: Geological Society of America Received: 18 May 2011 Revision Received: 07 Oct 2011 Accepted: 17 Oct 2011 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 © 2012 Geological Society of America Geology (2012) 40 (3): 259–262. https://doi.org/10.1130/G32471.1 Article history Received: 18 May 2011 Revision Received: 07 Oct 2011 Accepted: 17 Oct 2011 First Online: 09 Mar 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn MailTo Tools Icon Tools Get Permissions Search Site Citation Matthew S. Lachniet, Juan Pablo Bernal, Yemane Asmerom, Victor Polyak, Dolores Piperno; A 2400 yr Mesoamerican rainfall reconstruction links climate and cultural change. Geology 2012;; 40 (3): 259–262. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/G32471.1 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Droughts are a recurring feature of Mexican climate, but few high-resolution data are available to test for climate-change forcing of Mesoamerican civilizations. We present a quantitative 2400 yr rainfall reconstruction for the Basin of Mexico, from a precisely dated and highly resolved speleothem, that documents highly variable rainfall over the past 2400 yr. Dry conditions peaked during a 150-yr-long late Classic (ca. 600–900 CE) (Common Era) megadrought that culminated at 770 CE which followed centuries of climatic drying that spanned the fall of the city of Teotihuacán ca. 550 CE. The wettest conditions in the 1450s CE were associated with flooding in the Basin of Mexico. Our data suggest that rainfall variability was likely forced by the El Niño–Southern Oscillation, and impacts on spring-fed irrigation agriculture may have been a stressor on Mesoamerican civilizations. You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.