Articles | Volume 19, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-249-2023
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-249-2023
Research article
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27 Jan 2023
Research article | Highlight paper |  | 27 Jan 2023

Investigating hydroclimatic impacts of the 168–158 BCE volcanic quartet and their relevance to the Nile River basin and Egyptian history

Ram Singh, Kostas Tsigaridis, Allegra N. LeGrande, Francis Ludlow, and Joseph G. Manning

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Cited articles

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Co-editor-in-chief
The paper present results of cutting edge climate model simulations and reconstructions of volcanic eruption magnitude and timing to better understand the environmental context of the Ptolemaic era (305-30BCE). This important period of Ancient Egyptian history is known for its material and scientific advances, as well as for episodes of political and social unrest.
Short summary
This work is a modeling effort to investigate the hydroclimatic impacts of a volcanic quartet during 168–158 BCE over the Nile River basin in the context of Ancient Egypt's Ptolemaic era (305–30 BCE). The model simulated a robust surface cooling (~ 1.0–1.5 °C), suppressing the African monsoon (deficit of > 1 mm d−1 over East Africa) and agriculturally vital Nile summer flooding. Our result supports the hypothesized relation between volcanic eruptions, hydroclimatic shocks, and societal impacts.