Hydrological modeling of the 10 kyr BP paleo-lake in the Nakuru-Elmenteita basin, Central Kenya Rift
by
Miriam Duehnforth
Institut fuer Geowissenschaften, Universitaet Potsdam, Germany
Coauthors: Andreas G.N. Bergner, Martin H. Trauth

The Nakuru-Elmenteita basin (Central Kenya Rift) is characterized by two shallow, alkaline lakes: Lake Nakuru and Lake Elmenteita. Ancient shorelines and lake sediments suggest that around 10 kyr BP this basin was filled with a much larger lake as a result of a significantly wetter climate. The Early Holocene lake rose up to a level of 1940 m, 180 m higher than the modern lake level.

In this study a water-balance model is used to compare the present-day climate with the Early Holocene conditions. The results indicate which climatic scenario will be necessary to model the reconstructed Early Holocene lake.

Moreover, the modeling allows us to compare the hydrology of the Nakuru-Elmenteita basin with the basin to the south, the Naivasha basin, for which the existence of a high lake level about 10 kyr BP is also established. The catchment areas of both basins differ extremely from each other. While the catchment area of the Nakuru-Elmenteita basin is very small (~1400 km2), the catchment area of the Naivasha basin is much larger (~3.200 km2). So it would be interesting to know how the different sizes of catchment areas influence the hydrological conditions in both basins and if it is possible that there has been an exchange of the two basins in south-north direction.

Date received: March 30, 2001

Copyright © 2001 by the author(s). The author(s) of this document and the organizers of the conference have granted their consent to include this abstract in Atlas Conferences Inc. Document # cagc-72.