Continentality determines warming or cooling impact of heavy rainfall events on permafrost
Abstract Permafrost thaw can cause an intensification of climate change through the release of carbon as greenhouse gases. While the effect of air temperature on permafrost thaw is well quantified, the effect of rainfall is highly variable and not well understood. Here, we provide a literature revie...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:69ad29b98f494e979157023b6f023c90 2023-07-16T03:51:12+02:00 Continentality determines warming or cooling impact of heavy rainfall events on permafrost Alexandra Hamm Rúna Í. Magnússon Ahmad Jan Khattak Andrew Frampton 2023-06-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-39325-4 https://doaj.org/article/69ad29b98f494e979157023b6f023c90 EN eng Nature Portfolio https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-39325-4 https://doaj.org/toc/2041-1723 doi:10.1038/s41467-023-39325-4 2041-1723 https://doaj.org/article/69ad29b98f494e979157023b6f023c90 Nature Communications, Vol 14, Iss 1, Pp 1-13 (2023) Science Q article 2023 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-39325-4 2023-06-25T00:37:22Z Abstract Permafrost thaw can cause an intensification of climate change through the release of carbon as greenhouse gases. While the effect of air temperature on permafrost thaw is well quantified, the effect of rainfall is highly variable and not well understood. Here, we provide a literature review of studies reporting on effects of rainfall on ground temperatures in permafrost environments and use a numerical model to explore the underlying physical mechanisms under different climatic conditions. Both the evaluated body of literature and the model simulations indicate that continental climates are likely to show a warming of the subsoil and hence increased end of season active layer thickness, while maritime climates tend to respond with a slight cooling effect. This suggests that dry regions with warm summers are prone to more rapid permafrost degradation under increased occurrences of heavy rainfall events in the future, which can potentially accelerate the permafrost carbon feedback. Article in Journal/Newspaper Active layer thickness permafrost Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Nature Communications 14 1 |
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Science Q Alexandra Hamm Rúna Í. Magnússon Ahmad Jan Khattak Andrew Frampton Continentality determines warming or cooling impact of heavy rainfall events on permafrost |
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Science Q |
description |
Abstract Permafrost thaw can cause an intensification of climate change through the release of carbon as greenhouse gases. While the effect of air temperature on permafrost thaw is well quantified, the effect of rainfall is highly variable and not well understood. Here, we provide a literature review of studies reporting on effects of rainfall on ground temperatures in permafrost environments and use a numerical model to explore the underlying physical mechanisms under different climatic conditions. Both the evaluated body of literature and the model simulations indicate that continental climates are likely to show a warming of the subsoil and hence increased end of season active layer thickness, while maritime climates tend to respond with a slight cooling effect. This suggests that dry regions with warm summers are prone to more rapid permafrost degradation under increased occurrences of heavy rainfall events in the future, which can potentially accelerate the permafrost carbon feedback. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Alexandra Hamm Rúna Í. Magnússon Ahmad Jan Khattak Andrew Frampton |
author_facet |
Alexandra Hamm Rúna Í. Magnússon Ahmad Jan Khattak Andrew Frampton |
author_sort |
Alexandra Hamm |
title |
Continentality determines warming or cooling impact of heavy rainfall events on permafrost |
title_short |
Continentality determines warming or cooling impact of heavy rainfall events on permafrost |
title_full |
Continentality determines warming or cooling impact of heavy rainfall events on permafrost |
title_fullStr |
Continentality determines warming or cooling impact of heavy rainfall events on permafrost |
title_full_unstemmed |
Continentality determines warming or cooling impact of heavy rainfall events on permafrost |
title_sort |
continentality determines warming or cooling impact of heavy rainfall events on permafrost |
publisher |
Nature Portfolio |
publishDate |
2023 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-39325-4 https://doaj.org/article/69ad29b98f494e979157023b6f023c90 |
genre |
Active layer thickness permafrost |
genre_facet |
Active layer thickness permafrost |
op_source |
Nature Communications, Vol 14, Iss 1, Pp 1-13 (2023) |
op_relation |
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-39325-4 https://doaj.org/toc/2041-1723 doi:10.1038/s41467-023-39325-4 2041-1723 https://doaj.org/article/69ad29b98f494e979157023b6f023c90 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-39325-4 |
container_title |
Nature Communications |
container_volume |
14 |
container_issue |
1 |
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1771545719228858368 |