TITLE:
The Last 15,000 Years: Climate-Controlled and “Rare-Event”-Triggered/Rise and Fall of Holocene Cultures in the Near/Middle East and in Central Europe—Evidence and Background
AUTHORS:
Werner Schneider, Elias Salameh
KEYWORDS:
Climate, Rare Events, Mega-Volcanism, Impact-Events, Comets Interdependence/Relationship, Myths, Cultures, Holocene, Near/Middle East, Central Europe
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Geology,
Vol.5 No.11,
November
19,
2015
ABSTRACT: Pushed by the results of a preceding
publication on the possibly Quaternary Jebel Waqf as Suwwan Meteorite Crater,
Jordan [5], where an amazing coincidence of Rapid Climate Changes (RCCs) with Rise
and Fall of Neolithic and Bronze Age Cultures became evident for the
Near/Middle East, this paper deals with the same subject, however, relating to
the complete Holocene period in the same area and, additionally, in Central
Europe as well. By application of modern climatic data [6] comprising isotope analysis (δ18O, 14C, 10Be),
acid and aerosol events, and greenhouse gases (CO2, CH4)
Greenland ice cores as well as other astro-/geophysical and geological
parameters, an overwhelming coincidence/relation/interdependence of both
natural and cultural evidences becomes obvious throughout the last 15,000 years
across the Northern Hemisphere. Apart from solar output and other astrophysical
processes, most important climate- and Earth-related parameters are
Mega-Volcanism (i.e.Santorini Greece: ~3640 yr cal. B. P.), Impact
Events (i.e. during Mesolithic: ~9600 yr cal. B. P), rapid oceanic
current change (DO-Events), and Plate Tectonics (possibly Atlantis-Event:
~11,500 yr cal. B.P. = Pleistocene/Holocene boundary). The most essential
parameter is a significant temperature change related to more or less
restricted latitude realms of the Northern Hemisphere. Thus, glacier
advance/retreat controls the mobility of peoples (i.e. Nations'
Migration, Teutonic Empires) and the access to ore deposits (Au, Ag, Cu, Sn,
Zn, Pb, Fe) located in Alpine Mountain Ranges (i.e. End-Neolithic,
Early Bronze Age). Myths like the Gilgamesh Epos and John Apocalypse convincingly
reveal realistic contents relating to natural hazards like tsunamis, impact and
flooding events. They unmisunderstandably make obvious that Myths may provide
valuable contributions, especially to Geosciences. Some of the controlling
parameters interrelate with others or present a kind of hierarchy:
Mega-Volcanism/impact events à ejecta à wildfires, heat storms à cosmic winter, sint winter à stop of photosynthesis à mass extinction environmental pollution à greenhouse effects. Significant events
(21 cases in total) occurred on i.e.