The Lena: a large river in a deep permafrost zone

• Main Authors: Gautier, Emmanuèle, Costard, François, Fedorov, Alexander
• Other Authors: Laboratoire de géographie physique : Environnements Quaternaires et Actuels (LGP), Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne (UP1)-Université Paris-Est Créteil Val-de-Marne - Paris 12 (UPEC UP12)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Géosciences Paris Saclay (GEOPS), Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université Paris-Saclay-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Melnikov Permafrost Institut, Russian Academy of Sciences Moscow (RAS)
• Format: Book Part
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2022
• Subjects: [SDE]Environmental Sciences; laptev; Laptev Sea; lena delta; lena river; permafrost
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-03794677; https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119412632.ch11

International audience The Lena River is one of the major fluvial hydrosystems in the world with a main stem exceeding 4400 km in length and over 500 tributaries totalling 60 000 km. The river develops a multiple-channel pattern where numerous channels surround very large sand bars and forested islands. In terms of sediment supply, the Lena River is the main contributor to the Laptev Sea, with 20.7 million t yr –1 of suspended sediment. The Lena River floodplain and delta are host to many protected areas, the largest one being the Lena Delta Nature Reserve, the largest protected area in Russia. The Lena River is fascinating for its spectacular floods mainly controlled by periglacial dynamics. The strongly continental climate together with the permafrost creates a periglacial environment. Periglacial environments are deeply impacted by the current climate change. The water discharge disruptions induced by the current climate change make navigation extremely difficult and dangerous.