ABSTRACT
The time of maximum northward propagation of southwest monsoon winds and moisture over the northern Indian Ocean and its adjacent continents during the last glacial and recent interglacial occurred during the early Holocene between 9200 and 7850 C14 yr B.P.. This time interval stands for the maximum in summer insolation at 25°/35° N and is characterized by widespread occurrence of high lake levels and high rates of river discharge in the whole area extending as far as the Sahel, Sudan, East Africa, Arabia, Iran, Tibet, and northern India. Accordingly, monsoonal precipitation seem to follow changes in solar insoloation instantanously during interglacials, and reached far into the continents of Asia and Africa during times of maximum insolation strength.
