Thursday, December 12, 2024

'More landscape decompression': Arctic permafrost could collapse into rivers, unleashing a devastating feedback loop

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Maria Gill
Maria Gill
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Permafrost isn't just a feature of the Arctic landscape — it actually shapes that landscape by directing water flow. As global temperatures rise, this permanently frozen ground could give way to the creation of new rivers and the expansion of existing ones, which would release huge amounts of carbon into the atmosphere, potentially setting off a destructive feedback loop, scientists said.

In a new study published in February. 1 in the newspaper With peopleScientists have looked into the role permafrost plays in the Arctic's watersheds, the area of ​​land that transports water, such as rain and snowmelt, into creeks, streams, rivers, and eventually into reservoirs and oceans.

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