Late Quaternary Vegetation and Climate in the Eastern Caribbean

这项研究的长期目标是重建东加勒比岛屿在过去20，000年中发生的植被，湖泊条件和气候变化。 将对多明卡两个火山湖沉积的沉积物进行物理特性、化学成分和生物遗迹分析。该项目的第一阶段将测试一种新方法，根据冲入湖泊的大量植被碎片，在湖泊沉积物中探测史前飓风。这些地层将用铅-210测定年代，并与同一地区飓风的历史记录进行比较。 有人提出，由于气候变化使热带海面温度升高，飓风的强度和频率将会增加。 了解过去飓风的性质、范围和时间，以及植物群落对飓风的反应，将为未来可能的反应提供指导。

The long-term goals of this research are to reconstruct the changes in vegetation, lake conditions, and climate that occurred over the past 20,000 years on islands of the eastern Caribbean. Sediment deposited in two volcanic lakes on Dominca will be analyzed for physical characteristics, chemical contents, and biological remains. The first phase of this project will test a new method for detecting prehistoric hurricanes in lake sediment based on the large amounts of debris from vegetation that is washed into the lakes. These layers will be dated by lead-210 and compared with historical records of hurricanes in the same area. It has been proposed that hurricane intensity and frequency will increase in response to climate change that warms tropical sea surface temperatures. An understanding of the nature, ranges, and timing of past hurricanes and the responses of the plant communities to hurricanes will provide a guide to responses that are possible in the future.