The Sahara: a green and pleasant land
HistoryExtra podcast
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Did Humans Cause the Sahara to Dry Out?
The sahara gradually became a lot more arid. The prime reason it dried out was there was less solar radiation in the tropics. If you had about eight or nine % less solar radiation, you would have much weaker monsoon and shorter wet season. So will to the question, did humans cause it? I think in one or two places, as desecation set in, over grazing may have caused a slight increase in soil erosion some localities. That could be linked to both humans having an impact as well as the climate becoming drier.
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