Remote sensing quantifies widespread abundance of permafrost region disturbances across the Arctic and Subarctic
- Local observations indicate that climate change and shifting disturbance regimes are causing permafrost degradation. However, the occurrence and distribution of permafrost region disturbances (PRDs) remain poorly resolved across the Arctic and Subarctic. Here we quantify the abundance and distribution of three primary PRDs using time-series analysis of 30-m resolution Landsat imagery from 1999 to 2014. Our dataset spans four continental-scale transects in North America and Eurasia, covering similar to 10% of the permafrost region. Lake area loss (-1.45%) dominated the study domain with enhanced losses occurring at the boundary between discontinuous and continuous permafrost regions. Fires were the most extensive PRD across boreal regions (6.59%), but in tundra regions (0.63%) limited to Alaska. Retrogressive thaw slumps were abundant but highly localized (< 10(-5)%). Our analysis synergizes the global-scale importance of PRDs. The findings highlight the need to include PRDs in next-generation land surface models to project theLocal observations indicate that climate change and shifting disturbance regimes are causing permafrost degradation. However, the occurrence and distribution of permafrost region disturbances (PRDs) remain poorly resolved across the Arctic and Subarctic. Here we quantify the abundance and distribution of three primary PRDs using time-series analysis of 30-m resolution Landsat imagery from 1999 to 2014. Our dataset spans four continental-scale transects in North America and Eurasia, covering similar to 10% of the permafrost region. Lake area loss (-1.45%) dominated the study domain with enhanced losses occurring at the boundary between discontinuous and continuous permafrost regions. Fires were the most extensive PRD across boreal regions (6.59%), but in tundra regions (0.63%) limited to Alaska. Retrogressive thaw slumps were abundant but highly localized (< 10(-5)%). Our analysis synergizes the global-scale importance of PRDs. The findings highlight the need to include PRDs in next-generation land surface models to project the permafrost carbon feedback.…
Author details: | Ingmar NitzeORCiDGND, Guido GrosseORCiDGND, Benjamin M. JonesORCiD, Vladimir E. RomanovskyORCiD, Julia BoikeORCiDGND |
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DOI: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-07663-3 |
ISSN: | 2041-1723 |
Pubmed ID: | https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30575717 |
Title of parent work (English): | Nature Communications |
Publisher: | Nature Publ. Group |
Place of publishing: | London |
Publication type: | Article |
Language: | English |
Year of first publication: | 2018 |
Publication year: | 2018 |
Release date: | 2021/08/02 |
Volume: | 9 |
Number of pages: | 11 |
Funding institution: | European Research CouncilEuropean Research Council (ERC) [ERC338335]; Networking Fund of the Helmholtz Association [ERC-0013]; German Ministry for Research and Education (BMBF KoPf)Federal Ministry of Education & Research (BMBF); National Science FoundationNational Science Foundation (NSF) [OPP-1806213]; Joint Fire Science Program [16-1-01-8]; State of Alaska; Russian Science FoundationRussian Science Foundation (RSF) [RNF 16-17-00102]; Minobrnauka of the Russian FederationRussian Federation [RFMEFI58718X0048, 14.587.21.0048]; European Space Agency (GlobPermafrost)European Space Agency |
Organizational units: | Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Fakultät / Institut für Mathematik |
DDC classification: | 5 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik / 50 Naturwissenschaften / 500 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik |
Peer review: | Referiert |
Publishing method: | Open Access / Gold Open-Access |
DOAJ gelistet | |
External remark: | Zweitveröffentlichung in der Schriftenreihe Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Postprints der Universität Potsdam : Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Reihe ; 799 |