Dominik Fleitmann is professor of Quaternary Geology at the University of Basel. Fleitmann primarily researches

palaeoclimatology Paleoclimatology (British spelling, palaeoclimatology) is the study of climates for which direct measurements were not taken. As instrumental records only span a tiny part of Earth's history, the reconstruction of ancient climate is important to ...

using

stalagmite A stalagmite (, ; from the Greek , from , "dropping, trickling") is a type of rock formation that rises from the floor of a cave due to the accumulation of material deposited on the floor from ceiling drippings. Stalagmites are typically ...

s collected from caves in the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europ ...

and has also linked these records to societal impacts using archaeological and historical evidence. According to Fleitmann, his research into

s found in modern-day Saudi Arabia demonstrates a link between rainfall and human migration from the region, and a correlation between a period of severe drought and the collapse of the Kingdom of Himyar.

References

Academics of the University of Reading British archaeologists Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change contributing authors Living people Year of birth missing (living people) {{UK-academic-bio-stub