date: Thu, 26 May 2005 20:00:54 UT from: grlonline@agu.org subject: 2005GL023335 Request to Review from Geophysical Research Letters to: K.Briffa@uea.ac.uk Dear Dr. Briffa: Would you be willing and available to review "Reconstructed Drought Variability on the Crimean Peninsula over the Past Four Centuries and Tree-Ring Age Correction of Saki Lake Chronology" by Olga Solomina, Nicole Davi, Rosanne D'Arrigo, Gordon Jacoby, submitted for possible publication in the Geophysical Research Letters. The manuscript's abstract is: The first verifiable annual reconstruction of spring (April-July) precipitation is presented for Crimea, Ukraine. It is derived from Crimean pine (Pinus hamata D.Sosn) ring-width data spanning 1620-2002. The reconstruction accounts for 37% of the variance in observed precipitation over 1896-1988. Most droughts recorded in Crimean historical documents in the 17th-19th centuries coincide with below-average reconstructed precipitation in the concurrent or following year. An 11-year filtered version of the reconstruction correlates with an annually- laminated sediment thickness record from Saki Lake (4188 years long), once the lake record is shifted backward by 15 years. The offset may be explained by anthropogenic changes at the lake at the end of the 19th century. The significant relationship between the lake sediments and reconstruction suggests that the lake record is also a moisture indicator. If so, the wettest period of the past 1500 years (~ AD1050-1250) broadly coincides with the "Medieval Warm Period" in Crimea. If you agree to review this manuscript, I would ask for your comments within 14 days from your acceptance. To ACCEPT, click on the link below: If you are unable to review this manuscript at this time, I would appreciate any suggestions of other potential reviewers who would be qualified to examine this manuscript. (Via reply e-mail.) To DECLINE, click on the link below: If you have any questions or need more information feel free to reply to this e-mail. Thank you for your consideration and support of Geophysical Research Letters. Sincerely, James E. Saiers Associate Editor Geophysical Research Letters