2009Aug5: The Earth’s atmosphere contains about 850 gigatons of CO2 and its permafrost contains about 1,600 gigatons of carbon. “Permafrost historically has served as a carbon sink, largely isolating carbon from participating in the carbon cycle. However, global warming could transform the Arctic into a new carbon source by accelerating the rate of permafrost melting. This undoubtedly would have a dramatic effect on the global carbon cycle,” said Andrew Jacobson, a professor of earth and planetary sciences at Northwestern University (NSF, 2009).
Reference: NSF http://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=115311&org=NSF
Image Description: Andrew Jacobson of Northwestern University and a colleague hike along the Dalton Highway. Alaskan pipeline in foreground. Image Credit: Andrew D. Jacobson, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Northwestern University. Image Location: NSF http://www.nsf.gov/discoveries/disc_summ.jsp?cntn_id=115311&org=NSF Image Permission: This work is copyrighted and unlicensed. However, it is believed that the use of this work to illustrate the subject in question, Where no free equivalent is available or could be created that would adequately give the same information, on Interlinked Challenges, hosted on servers in the United States by Michigan State University, qualifies as fair use under United States copyright law.
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This post is tagged 2000s Climate Change Events, 21st Century and Climate Change, Arctic and Climate Change, Climate Change Effects, CO2, CO2 Levels, Forces Driving Climate Change, Greenhouse Gases, Human Influences on Climate Change, Permafrost Thaw, Polar Regions and Climate Change
