During the 150-year period from A.D. 800 to 950, rainfall in the Maya region repeatedly declined for periods lasting as long as a decade.
Notes on verification
Directly corroborated by peer-reviewed Science paper (Medina-Elizalde & Rohling 2012) and multiple independent news outlets reporting the same study, plus additional paleoclimate proxy studies supporting the general pattern of repeated decadal droughts in the Terminal Classic period. [cascade flags: aggregator_dropped_primary_exists | tier=silver indep_score=0.7 clusters=4 claim_tier=notable | framework convergence=partial on Medina-Elizalde & Rohling (2012) quantitative paleoclimate reconstruction combining lake sediment, coral/shell, and stalagmite proxy records (upstreams: Medina-Elizalde and Rohling 2012 Science paper, University of Southampton press release) — publishers independent, evidence may not be | kind=empirical eligibility=high]
Sources
- Drought May Have Spelled End for Maya | HISTORY (seed:history_and_archaeology)
- https://www.cbsnews.com/news/collapse-of-mayan-civilization-traced-to-dry-spells/ (corroboration)
- https://www.foxnews.com/science/what-caused-collapse-of-mayan-civilization (corroboration)
- https://www.nbcnews.com/science/cosmic-log/maya-doom-teaches-climate-lesson-flna180762 (corroboration)
- https://eprints.soton.ac.uk/336791 (corroboration)