Permafrost stores >2x as much as carbon as is in the atmosphere. The most carbon-rich permafrost is associated with ground ice, yet climate models don't account for ice-rich permafrost thaw (Turetsky et al. @Nature 2019). This WICKED problem underestimates Arctic emissions. 1/ Map showing the colocation of carbon rich permafrost soils w
In my @CUBoulder lecture today I outlined a trifecta of uncertainties related to permafrost & carbon.
1) We know plants and new biomass will offset some permafrost soil carbon losses with thaw, but how much? And will that "green carbon" last in the face of 🔥🔥👇 2/ Photograph of a wildfire in a permafrost wetland complex sho
#2 wicked uncertainty. How can climate models include abrupt permafrost thaw that leads to massive erosion, landslides, and subsidence? These are incredible state changes that affect meters and meters of soil carbon, yet are currently ignored by climate models. 3/ Photograph of abrupt thaw leading to thermokarst and loss of
Final uncertainty & perhaps the elephant in the room. How much permafrost carbon will be released as methane? In our first-ever model simulations of different types of abrupt thaw, we observed high proportions of methane release and these methane fluxes increased over time. 4/ Photograph of methane bubbles trapped in a frozen thaw lake

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More from @queenofpeat

4 Nov
Please share to build awareness! Permafrost is being featured today at #COP26Glasgow. Here I will explain why this is SO important to our future climate and everything we know and love about the Arctic. Stick with me for a cooler than cool 🧵. Photo @grosse_guido 1/ Photograph of a permafrost cliff showing exposed permafrost
Permafrost is diverse, comprised of frozen earth (rock, soil, sediment...). It often contains pockets of ice of all sizes. For many many 1000s of yrs, permafrost has been quietly doing its thing. Aggrading & locking atmospheric carbon into frozen ground. A true climate champ! 2/ Photograph of a permafrost core with layers of frozen peat a
Permafrost is a HIDDEN gem of the Arctic. Frozen ground is buried by a surface active layer (soil, moss) that freezes & thaws seasonally. But dig deeper, and we come across perennially frozen ground. This makes it difficult to study from surface or remote sensing measurements. 3/ Two permafrost researchers - Jean Hollaway and Kirsten Reid
Read 12 tweets
30 Sep
Big Run Bog, West Virginia. circa 1995

This is a true story, but also science legend. When bogs want to share their secrets, they delight with sunlight & spider webs glistening on wet stems, dragonflies feasting. But a bog can turn on you at any moment, as I learned. 1/ Image of sundews, moss, and sedges in a bog.
The drive was fueled by stories and big laughter from our guests. Approaching the rolling hills of West Virginia, the Czech scientists pressed their faces against the warm windows. We rolled into motel rooms eager to greet the morning. Such perfect field conditions we thought. 2/
Early morning realization- thick fog had settled in & I couldn’t see the field truck. It will burn off we said confidently. But there was no laughing as we hiked into the bog. Crunchy footsteps connected with frozen peat. It was a magical strange world draped in hoar frost. 3/ Image of ice on plant stems.
Read 11 tweets
27 Aug
This is a story about one of the most powerful plants on Earth, the climate champion Sphagnum moss. This story is about science, discovery, & how much we have left to learn. Not about a distant planet, but a group of plants millions of years old that continues to astound us. 1/ Photograph of red Sphagnum capitula.
Sphagnum are infamous for storing carbon from the atmosphere via thick layers of peat. Sphagnum tissue decomposes slowly, sometimes more slowly than wood! As a result Sphagnum & peatlands have cooled our climate for millennia. So please thank Sphagnum moss! 2/ Image of permafrost peat including some Sphagnum remains.
In the 1990's I was a new graduate student looking for a way to merge interests in ecology & climate. I started working on permafrost thaw in peatlands, but became obsessed w/ a simple question. Why does Sphagnum decompose slowly? It's unusual so why Why WHY? 3/ Panorama of permafrost thaw in a subarctic peatland showing
Read 14 tweets
15 Jul
In @NMNH's panel on vicious #climate cycles, I was asked why permafrost is important. Here I'll give my top reasons from carbon to caribou. #1 For millenia, permafrost has been Earth's freezer for ancient C. Permafrost stores more C than global forests; on par w/ fossil fuels. 1/ Cartoon of global carbon pools showing that permafrost store
Reason #2. Permafrost is the backbone of the Arctic. Thaw can trigger sinking or erosion that kills vegetation & makes ground dangerous for travel. The loss of frozen ground means the loss of stability. Travel routes, hunting grounds, animal migration - all unreliable w/ thaw. 2/ Panorama of permafrost thaw in northwestern Canada showing s
Reason #3. If permafrost is the backbone, rivers are the arteries of the Arctic. As permafrost (frozen ground) thaws, rivers are changing in shape, temperature, nutrients, & types of fish. New obstacles threaten boating routes. Water is life. 3/ Photograph of a thaw slump eroding sediment and soil into th
Read 7 tweets
27 Mar
A wee history lesson on wetlands as wastelands. This philosophy dominated colonialism in the 🇺🇸 as wetlands were seen as a barrier to “building the country”. Early settlers lacked resources to drain wetlands, but this changed w/ the Swamp Land Act passed by Congress in 1849. 1/
States gained the right to sell wetlands, w/ profit intended to fund “dehydration” of the land. This Act decimated wetlands throughout #Louisiana & #Florida but also #Minnesota & #Oregon. It also set the stage for toll-use of canals, privatizing travel in the U.S. 2/
The govt used wetland drainage to attract settlers to push through the “last frontier.” Cultivating drained wetlands was seen as the best option to curb overcrowding in cities and to reduce land disputes. Because of the scale & what was at stake, the US military got involved. 3/
Read 5 tweets
3 Mar
Have a job offer? Need to negotiate but not sure how? Negotiating wisely has long-term $ impacts, yet often is considered a taboo topic. No more! Here I'll share some advice as someone who has sat on both sides. Please share to help out early career colleagues in any field! 1/
Why is negotiating a taboo subject? Many orgs (including universities) have convinced us that we should feel honored & lucky to receive a job offer. I call bullshit. We all worked too hard for that. Rule 1: the minute you have a job offer, you are in the driver's seat. 2/
Also why negotiating is taboo - good negotiators are often described as cunning & shrewd, not "becoming" for women. I call bullshit for the second time. Rule 2: Negotiating is about communication, relationship building, & strategic thinking. These are areas where women excel. 3/
Read 15 tweets

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