Why the East-Siberian Arctic shelf should be considered as a new focal point for methane studies.

Why the East-Siberian Arctic shelf should be  considered as a new focal point for methane studies.

Description

"The importance of this huge pool of old carbon, stored within on-land permafrost in the Siberian region, has been repeatedly highlighted during the last decade. This importance is determined by the gradual mobilization of old carbon and its incorporation into the modern carbon cycle in the form of methane during permafrost thawing, creating a positive feedback to a global warming. At the same time, the "Siamese twin" role of Siberian on-land permafrost - relic off-shore permafrost, which presumably comprises the largest part of the East-Siberian Arctic shelf (ESAS) - has never been examined under a spot light. The purpose of this paper is to show that the ESAS represents an even more significant and incomparably more vulnerable carbon pool, which should be taken into consideration while assessing the global carbon cycle."

Information

Author(s)
Shakhova, N., I. Semiletov, and D. Kosmach
Publisher
Geophysical Research Abstracts
Date / journal vol no.
2008 / Vol. 10, EGU2008-A-00125
Pages
2

References