Pleistocene lakes in southern Israel and Jordan: the environmental conditions of the first step out of Africa

以色列南部和约旦沙漠中的更新世湖泊沉积物和相关的史前文物是目前极度干旱地区条件明显变湿的证据。这一地区许多地点的湖泊沉积物为研究更新世的环境和气候条件提供了一个独特的机会，利用与地中海距离越来越远的东西向梯度作为主要的水分来源。以色列南部和约旦更新世湖泊的范围、水深和水化学将通过沉积学、地球化学和古生物学手段重建。综合地质和补充考古数据将有助于更好地了解(1)以色列南部和约旦更新世早期、中期和晚期的环境和气候历史，(2)可能导致湿度波动的大气环流模式的变化，(3)以色列南部和约旦在原始人迁徙和可能占领非洲的过程中所起的作用，以及(4)地下水补给的时间和当地表现。我们的研究将为最南端的黎凡特地区提供重要的气候推断，而目前正在进行的关于死海盆地的ICDP研究主要受以色列北部和约旦的湿度条件控制。

Pleistocene lake sediments and associated prehistoric artifacts in the deserts of southern Israel and Jordan are evidence for significantly wetter conditions in the presently hyperarid region. The occurrence of lake sediments at a number of sites in this area provides a unique opportunity to investigate the environmental and climatic conditions in the Pleistocene using a West-East gradient of increasing distance from the Mediterranean Sea as a major moisture source. The extent, water depth, and water chemistry of the Pleistocene lakes in southern Israel and Jordan will be reconstructed by sedimentological, geochemical and palaeontological means. A synthesis of the geological and supplementary archaeological data will contribute to a better understanding of (1) the early, mid and late Pleistocene environmental and climatic history of southern Israel and Jordan, (2) of the shifts in atmospheric circulation patterns that potentially caused moisture fluctuations, (3) of the role of southern Israel and Jordan in the migration and possibly occupation of hominids on their way out of Africa, and (4) of the timing and local expression of groundwater recharge. Our study will provide important climate inferences for the southernmost Levant in comparison to the ongoing ICDP study of the Dead Sea Basin which is mainly controlled by the moisture conditions in northern Israel and Jordan.