Alaska’s permafrost is starting to thaw as the climate warms, and scientists project there will be even greater thawing of the frozen soils in the coming decades, releasing carbon into the atmosphere, and impacting ecological systems and infrastructure.

A panel of permafrost experts will unveil new findings about permafrost degradation in Alaska, where permafrost covers 80 percent of the land, and new projections of future permafrost changes in the state and its national parks. They will also discuss the consequences of permafrost degradation in the region and the development of a permafrost forecast system.

Participants:
Vladimir Romanovsky, Professor of Geophysics, Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Alaska, USA;
Santosh Panda, Research Associate, Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, Alaska, USA;
Kevin Schaefer, Research Scientist, National Snow and Ice Data Center, University of Colorado Boulder, Colorado, USA.

• Teaser image credit USGS http://alaska.usgs.gov/science/interdisciplinary_science/cae/arctic_coastal_plain.php
• Related http://Permafrostwatch.org