date: Tue Sep 22 13:37:25 1998 from: Keith Briffa subject: advice on manuscript K08434 to: grudd@natgeo.su.se Hakan this is in confidence Keith >Return-path: >Envelope-to: f023@cpca11.uea.ac.uk >Delivery-date: Tue, 22 Sep 1998 12:34:02 +0100 >From: "VanDecar, John" >To: "'K.Briffa@uea.ac.uk'" >Subject: advice on manuscript K08434 >Date: Tue, 22 Sep 1998 12:33:04 +0100 > >Dear Keith, > > I am writing in the hope that you may be able to provide some advice >on a manuscript submitted to Nature by Douglas Keenan, entitled "The >300-year upheaval induced by the eruption of 2037 BC, and regional >radiocarbon disparities". > >The first paragraph of the paper follows: > >"Several researchers have previously identified a climatic upheaval in >tropical North Africa and south-western Asia that began just over 4000 >years ago and lasted for about three centuries. We argue here that the >upheaval included Europe, the North Atlantic, and probably most of the >world, that the principal climatic mechanism was an extremely high phase >of the North Atlantic Oscillation, and that it was likely the largest >climatic upheaval since the ice ages. The full scope of the upheaval has >previously been missed in part because radiocarbon dates from some areas >are centuries too early: palaeoclimatic events in different areas thus >appeared asynchronous. The cause of the radiocarbon-dating disparities >is identified as a regional deficiency in 14C, and we locate the >region's source of 14C-deficient carbon. The upheaval as previously >identified is known to have occurred shortly after a volcanic eruption. >A companion paper proposes that the eruption was colossal and dates it >to 2037 +/- 1 BC. Here we suggest how the eruption acted as a trigger >for the upheaval" > > Is this a paper that you would be willing to review for us? If so, >please let me know as soon as possible, and I will send it to you. To be >honest, we are not completely sure that the paper is not somewhat >fanciful, so if you felt that it did not deserve a detailed review, a >short report describing the main areas of deficiency would be adequate. > > Many thanks in advance for whatever help you are able to give me, and >I hope to hear from you soon. > >Best wishes, >John VanDecar > >=-------------------------------------------------------------------= > j.vandecar@nature.com / +44 171-843-4545 / fax +44 171-843-4596 > Nature Nature > 4 Crinan Street 968 National Press Building > London N1 9XW England Washington, DC 20045-1938 USA >=-------------------------------------------------------------------= > >