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Frozen soil, a ground where the temperature drops below zero degrees for more than two years, exists in Alaska and Siberia. It also accounts for 20% of the continents of the Northern Hemisphere. It is reported that these frozen layers are releasing 1.7 billion tons of carbon dioxide per year as they melt due to climate change.
Alaska and Siberia are spreading frozen frozen soil for more than two years in a row. However, the continuous melting of permafrost due to global warming is a problem. It has been pointed out from before that a large amount of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane are released from the molten permafrost due to the decomposition of organic matter by microorganisms.
75 scientists from dozens of organizations in 12 countries installed monitors that measure more than 100 carbon dioxide levels in the Arctic and conducted more than 1,000 measurements. According to this, it was found that far more carbon dioxide was released in the Arctic than previously thought. It is said that the amount of emissions was 1.7 billion tons per year, which was twice the estimate.
In the North Pole, every summer there is a white-night phenomenon, and the sun shines in the sky almost all day long. Therefore, in summer, it is the growing season of Arctic plants and large amounts of carbon dioxide are absorbed. This absorption is more than 1 billion tons, resulting in 600 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.
The research team revealed that the amount of carbon dioxide emitted from permafrost so far and the amount of carbon dioxide absorbed by plants in summer were almost the same, but the amount of carbon dioxide emitted from permafrost in winter was larger than that during growth.
According to the research team, warming of permafrost is ongoing and carbon dioxide emissions tend to increase. It is pointed out that if this rate is maintained, the amount of carbon dioxide emission may increase by 41% by the end of the 21st century. In addition, even if efforts are made to prevent warming, emissions will increase by at least 17%.
This study was limited to measuring the amount of carbon dioxide and did not measure the amount of methane gas emitted, which has a greenhouse effect that is 30 times stronger than carbon dioxide. Related information can be found here .
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