Secular Variability of the Caspian Sea Level

Abstract

The variability ofthe level and area ofthe Caspian Sea during the Late Glacial Maximum and Holocene is analyzed. It is found that sea level variations during the period of quasisteady Holocene climate can be represented as a result of the accumulation of small anomalies in the water regime, i.e., as a manifestation of the self-developing system. The model of the Caspian Sea water balance was used to test this hypothesis. Empirical data on various-scale sea level variations are presented, and an attempt to explain their nature is made. The origin of large transgressions and regressions is analyzed.