Prof. Dr. Gerhard Schmiedl
University of Hamburg
The eastern Mediterranean Sea (EMS) responds sensitively to orbital and suborbital climate variability and related hydrological changes of the adjacent continents. Recurrent deposition of organic-rich sediment layers (sapropels) is caused by complex interactions between climatic and biogeochemical processes. Disentangling these influences is therefore important for Mediterranean palaeo-studies but also to understand climate links between the EMS and the African Monsoon system. Sapropels are diagnostic of anoxic deep-water phases, which have been attributed to deep-water stagnation, enhanced biological production, or both.
