#ARCTIC. #SIBERIA. THIS IS TAIMYR. An international team of scientists has discovered unusual ice formations in the Canadian Arctic Beaufort sea. The discovery indicates that permafrost formation processes previously unknown to science are taking place underwater.
As TASS reports with reference to the Geophysical Research: Earth Surface journal, during expeditions scientists discovered layers of ice that are not related to the ancient permafrost that formed during the last ice age. These layers are forming right now as a result of complex processes, when deeper ancient layers of permafrost melt and the water freezes again.
As stated in the publication, ancient layers of permafrost on the Arctic shelf ended up under water as a result of a gradual rise in sea level. Under water, this permafrost is gradually melting, and not as a result of human impact – it is heated from below by the heat of the earth’s interior. And new layers of permafrost from salty groundwater form mountain ranges and funnels on the bottom.
Scientists hope that further research will help to better understand what is happening in the Arctic and what role permafrost plays in the global climate system.
Earlier we reported that the association of permafrost specialists – geocryologists – was established in Russia.
Follow us on Telegram, VKontakte.
Text: Alexander Kalashnikov, Photo: Nikolay Shchipko
