Frozen Arctic soils set to release vast amounts of greenhouse gases
Washington: Frozen Arctic soils are set to release vast amounts of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere as they continue to thaw in coming decades. Despite concerns that this will fuel future global warming, the scale and speed of this important climate process remain uncertain.
To help address this knowledge gap, ESA-funded researchers have developed and released a new permafrost dataset - the longest, satellite-derived permafrost record currently available.
Covering 18 million sq km, northern hemisphere permafrost areas have been warming since the 1980s, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change s latest report on oceans and cryosphere.
Long-term permafrost record details Arctic thaw ANI | Updated: Dec 16, 2020 16:48 IST
Washington [US], December 16 (ANI): Frozen Arctic soils are set to release vast amounts of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere as they continue to thaw in coming decades.
Despite concerns that this will fuel future global warming, the scale and speed of this important climate process remain uncertain.
To help address this knowledge gap, ESA-funded researchers have developed and released a new permafrost dataset - the longest, satellite-derived permafrost record currently available.
Covering 18 million sq km, northern hemisphere permafrost areas have been warming since the 1980s, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change s latest report on oceans and cryosphere.
ESA Long-term satellite record details permafrost thaw
Frozen Arctic soils are set to release vast amounts of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere as they continue to thaw in coming decades. To aid in understanding the scale and speed of this climate process, researchers have released a new permafrost dataset.
By definition, permafrost is ground that continuously remains below 0°C (32°F) for two or more years, located on land or under the ocean, however, much of the sub-surface ground in the Arctic polar regions has been frozen since the last ice age.
Close to 25 percent of the Northern Hemisphere is underlain by permafrost, including 85 percent of Alaska, Greenland, Canada, and Siberia. It can also be located on mountaintops, such as the Andes and exposed land in Antarctica in the Southern Hemisphere.
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