Permafrost in der Arktis
Forever Frozen?Permafrost in the ArcticA story of the research project PermaRisk. Turn on full screen and sound!
Life on permafrost
Moritz Langer, Ph.D.
Reserach director, PermaRisk
What does PermaRisk investigate?
The Arctic freezer
Cement of the Arctic
Expedition permafrost
Where is permafrost?
About a quarter of the soil in the Northern hemisphere is frozen. The dark blue areas on the map show the continuous permafrost. More than 90 percent of these areas have frozen ground. Continuous permafrost can reach depths of several hundred meters, for example in Siberia. The lighter blue areas mark the discontinuous permafrost. Here, permafrost is not everywhere and sometimes only a few meters deep. Towards the South the permafrost gets warmer and warmer until there is no permafrost anymore.
Traveling in Alaska
Click here to accompany the PermaRisk team on an expedition along the Dalton Highway in Alaska!
Welcome in Churchill!
In Northern Canada, on the border between the Arctic and the Subarctic, lies Churchill. About 900 people live in this small town on the threshold between land and ocean, tundra and boreal forest, civilisation and wilderness. What happens to the railway, streets and buildings in Churchill when the permafrost thaws? You can learn more about life and permafrost research in Churchill in our other stories.
Extreme Siberia
Permafrost in Siberia can be up to 1.400 meters deep and may consist of more than 70 percent ice. Click here and have a closer look!
Submarine permafrost
Submarine permafrost is a special form of permafrost in the shelf sea of the Arctic Ocean. The permafrost developed during the last glacial period when the shelf was dry. The the sea level then rose and the permafrost persisted due to the low water temperatures. More than 80 percent of the submarine permafrost in the Arctic are located along the East Siberian coast. The submarine permafrost contains carbon in the form of gas and gas hydrates. When the submarine permafrost thaws, the gases are released into the atmosphere and could amplify the warming of the climate.
Explore the Arctic
Liiving in the wild North
How do people live in the wilderness in the far North? Listen to the stories of the people in Churchill, Canada.
The permafrost risk
Scientists of the research team PermaRisk investigate the permafrost in Churchill, Canada. Go on expedition with them and find out how permafrost is changing!
What is permafrost?
This video animation explains in detail what permafrost is and what happens when permafrost thaws.
Interactive map of permafrost in the Arctic
The map shows modelled thaw depths and areas of permafrost in the Arctic for three different climate scenarios from the years 1800 to 2100. The map shows how warming temperatures cause the soil to thaw deeper and deeper. Carbon that was previously frozen is now thawing and is being released to the atmosphere.
Research news
The Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research conducts research of all aspects of permafrost. Here you can find information and the newest research findings about permafrost in the Arctic.
Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is an institution of the United Nations body. Researchers from all over the world gather scientific knowledge and assess the science related to climate change. Climate change in the polar regions and its effect on permafrost is a specific topic.
References
A project of the research group PermaRisk
The project was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education.
Scenario, production and postproduction: denkbargruen and dsein
Design: dsein
Photo and Video:
Permafrost in the Arctic
Page 1, 10 - PermaRisk
Page 2, 3, 5, 6, 11, 14 - Sina Muster
Page 4, 7 - Boris Radosavljevic CC BY-SA 2.0
Page 9 - Thomas Opel, Hugues Lantuit
Page 10 - Thomas Schneider von Deimling
Page 12 - IPA, 1998
Photo and Video:
Traveling in Alaska
Page 1 - Gretarsson, CC 2.0
Page 2 - Stephan Jacobi
Page 3, 4 - Thomas Schneider von Deimling
Sources:https://www.weltderphysik.de/gebiet/erde/atmosphaere/klimaforschung/permafrost/