Characteristics and spectral properties of periglacial landforms in the Lena-Delta, Arctic Russia

• Main Author: Ulrich, Mathias
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2006
• Subjects: Arctic; lena delta; permafrost; Tundra; Siberia
• Online Access: https://epic.awi.de/id/eprint/15501/; https://epic.awi.de/id/eprint/15501/1/Ulr2006b.pdf; https://hdl.handle.net/10013/epic.25632; https://hdl.handle.net/10013/epic.25632.d001

Arctic permafrost landscapes are considered to be very sensitive to climatic change as is predicted by many climate simulations covering the next century. Currently, regions of wet tundra in periglacial landscapes are considered to be important sinks of carbon (e.g. peat accumulation, permafrost aggradation) and strong methane sources. Under changing climatic conditions, i.e. climate warming, various environmental parameters in permafrost landscapes will be altered (permafrost temperature, active layer depth, soil moisture, precipitation, etc.), resulting possibly in an enhanced release of greenhouse gasses from this large carbon storage.Remote sensing and spatial data analysis are the most prospective tools to detect and quantify such changes on large scales. The successful interpretation of multispectral- and hyperspectral remote sensing data of spatially complex Arctic permafrost landscapes requires considerable field work for ground truth. This includes the acquisition of data on vegetation, soils, geomorphology, and also spectral surface properties. We collected extensive ground truth data in the Lena Delta, NE Siberia, during the joint Russian-German expedition Lena Delta 2005. The Lena Delta is the largest Arctic Delta and dominated by fluvial-deltaic and periglacial processes. Continuous permafrost with depths between 200-600 m occurs in this region. Generally, the landscapes of the Lena Delta are dominated by typical tundra vegetation. The delta is subdivided into three geomorphological terraces, which distinctly differ in their cryolithological, hydrological and geomorphological properties.Recent floodplains and Holocene sandy deposits form the first terrace, which is assumed to represent the modern active delta. The second terrace, mainly consisting of the large Arga-Muora-Sise Complex in the NW of the delta, is characterized by sandy deposits. Its probably fluvial genesis and Late Pleistocene origin is still under investigation and discussion. The third terrace consists of remnants of a Late ...