Nature Communications, 10 December 2024
Mountain permafrost makes up 30% of global permafrost area, and helps preserve the stability of many high altitude steep mountain slopes. Permafrost thawing and degradation causes far-reaching impacts and risks to both human safety and infrastructure, as well as on ecosystems and hydrological processes. In this study, decadal ground temperature data from boreholes in the Alps, Scandinavia, Iceland, Sierra Nevada and Svalbard show that during 2013–2022, permafrost in Europe’s mountains has warmed by more than 1°C per decade in several places, matching the rates of Arctic lowlands.
Full paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-54831-9
News briefing provided by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL): https://phys.org/news/2024-12-mountain-permafrost-europe.html
By Science Writing Intern Haily Landrigan, Global Outreach Director Amy Imdieke, and ICCI Director Pam Pearson.
Published Jan. 7, 2025 Updated Jan. 7, 2025 10:11 pm