Abrupt changes of thermokarst lakes in Western Siberia: impacts of climatic warming on permafrost melting

Abstract

Peatlands situated in a permafrost zone and consisting of thin layers of frozen peat, especially palsas in the sub‐arctic region of Western Siberia, are a very sensitive indicator of climatic changes, such that any changes of climate in the direction of warming lead to increased activity in a thermokarst process over extensive areas. Thermokarst lakes as an invariable element of the palsa mire complex are the most convenient object for distant monitoring of the global warming influence on the state of the permafrost rocks.

Keywords:

• Global warming
• Methane emission
• Permafrost
• Remote sensing
• Thermokarst lake
• West‐Siberian palsa bog

Acknowledgements

This research was financially supported by EU‐INTAS project 34.35.25 and RFBR 08‐05‐92496.