The South Atlantic plays a critical role in the couplingofoceanic processes between the Antarctic and the lower latitudes. The Antarctic Ocean, along with the adjacent southern seas, is of substantial importance for global climate and for the distributionofwater masses because itprovides large regions ofthe world ocean with intermediate and bottom waters. In contrast to the North Atlantic, the Southern Ocean acts more as an "information distributor", as opposed to an amplifier. Just as the North Atlantic is influencedby the South Atlantic through the contributionofwarm surface water,the incomingsupply ofNADW - in the area of the Southern Ocean as Circumantarctic Deep Water - influences the oceanography ofthe Antarctic. The competing influences from the northern and southern oceans on the current and mass budget systems can be best studied in the South Atlantic. Not only do changes in the current systems in the eastern Atlantic high-production regions affect the energy budget, they also influence the nutrient inventories, and therefore impact the entire productivity ofthe ocean. In addition, the broad region of the polar front is a critical area with respect to productivity-related circulation since it is the source of Antarctic Intermediate Water. Although theAntarctic Intermediate Watertoday liesdeeper than the water that rises in the upwelling regions, it is the long-term source ofnutrients that are ultimately responsible for the supply oforganic matter to the sea floor and to sediments.

The South Atlantic plays a significant role as a link between the Antarctic Ocean and the North Atlantic, both in terms of the heat budget of the North Atlantic and the circulation of the entire ocean. The heat and mass exchanges between the Antarctic Ocean and the South Atlantic during the Late Quaternary have been investigated over the past ten years, including their impact on world climate. This has required the study of present-day early diagenetic processes in the water column and sediments, as well as sediment properties that have a close relationship to environmental parameters ("proxies"), which can be used to decipher past conditions (temperature, salinity, productivity, etc.). The interdisciplinary research project "The South Atlantic in the Late Quaternary - Reconstruction of material budgets and current systems" was a long-term scientific program at Bremen University. This program benefited from the sample material gained on several expeditions with the research vessels Meteor and Polarstern. This book presents the summarized results of the various topics of study in 30 articles arranged in seven sections.

Combining the expertise of an archaeologist and a geologist, this important study gives a balanced evaluation of South African climatic history, summarizing such diverse evidence as dune systems, stable isotopes, pollen, fossil bones, and the distribution of Stone Age people. Together, these factors show the effects of climatic changes on terrestrial ecosystems in the southern African landscape. A comprehensive overview of the nature, scale, and timing of changes coincident with the worldwide interglacial-glacial-interglacial cycle is also presented. The potentials and pitfalls of palaeonenvironmental reconstructions and the implications for biogeography, human population distributions, and palaeoclimatic models are also featured. Researchers in these areas will appreciate this unique and insightful exploration into the climatic history of this fascinating region.