Skip to content

Climate

Methane danger in undersea permafrost .

by Dave Armstrong 24 Dec 2014
Methane danger in undersea permafrost .

Like the two thirds of an iceberg that remains below water, the massive amounts of methane stored under the Arctic can only be estimated with models. Here, after sinkholes appearing on land in Siberia, enormous amounts of permafrost methane have been estimated BELOW the sea in the Russian Arctic; Iceberg image; Credit: © Shutterstock

Methane is well-known as a greenhouse gas. What we have missed in models of greenhouse warming is the vast disparity between the heavy carbon dioxide and the sheer lightness and solubility of methane. Being aware of the presence of this simple gas in swamps and even cattle, we should have worked out that any trapped gas could become a problem when it was released. The scene in Arctic waters like the Kara and the Pechora Seas is ripe for a massive release of methane. If warming from 2 sources continues to melt undersea permafrost and release enormous amounts of the gas, they will smell it from Moscow to Washington.

lexey Portnov, Jurgen Mienert and Pavel Serov of the Arctic University of Norway in Tromsà ¸ and VNIIOkeangeologia in Saint Petersburg have published a worrying paper in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences, in which they have been, Modeling the evolution of climate-sensitive Arctic subsea permafrost in regions of extensive gas expulsion at the West Yamal shelf . In it, they ponder the 2 problems of vulcanism beneath the sea and warming ocean above the permafrost. Intermittently, both have melted the permafrost and released the dreaded methane.

The Russian portion of the Arctic shelves that stretch from Eurasia deep into the cold waters contain degrading subsea permafrost, swallowed up when sea levels rose 20,000 years ago in the Late Pleistocene. Minor changes in the temperature, such as subtle geothermal heat flow from beneath, seem to affect the methane production. The permafrost has a thickness of 275-390m near the shore which leaves us with incredible amounts of methane when you consider how much dissolves in one cubic meter of water. That figure is 164 cubic meters!

Dr Portnov has explained that while permafrost on land exists down to around 700m, the ocean can actually maintain permafrost even though the bottom temperature rises above zero. Because the land was submerged 20,000 years ago, the permafrost remains trapped at depths from 100m to very shallow waters. The gas plumes can be seen at 20-50m depths, indicating how fragile the permafrost situation is. His models show that 9000 years would be needed to melt the permafrost if the bottom temperature is 0.5 o C. We have determined quite definitely that the oceanic temperatures will now rise by 2 degrees, whatever the mitigation we can manage. Such a rise would, mathematically, lead to explosive gas releases from shallow seas like the Kara.

Recently giant sinkholes have been appearing on the Kara Peninsula, in part leading to this research. The exact cause has been worked out. Gas hydrates formed from methane remain stable in permafrost, but release great amounts of methane when warmed. The volume of the giant holes is the result of that destabilisation, with the volatile and light methane gas released into the atmosphere.

Welcome to the reality of global warming – and the new added ingredient – it causes even more global warming. Way back in 2011, Martin Leggett warned of the Arctic danger that lies in methane. It is 20X more effective as a greenhouse gas than the dreaded carbon dioxide. Now figure where the biggest danger lies.


Trending Eco-Friendly Clothing

Love My Planet Women's Relaxed Fit Hoodie
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Love My Planet Women's Relaxed Fit Hoodie
Love My Planet women's eco-friendly relaxed fit hoodieSize Guide Centimeters 8 10 12 14 16 18 Bust 84 88 92 97 103 108 Waist 66 70 75 80 85 91 Hips 91 95 99 104 109 116 Bust: Measure around the fullest part of...
£38.00
£38.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Penguins Hate Push-Ups Men's Pullover Hoodie
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Penguins Hate Push-Ups Men's Pullover Hoodie
Penguins Hate Push-Ups men's eco-friendly pullover HoodieSize Guide Centimeters XS S M L XL XXL Height 171 175 179 183 189 195 Chest 86 93 99 104 116 129 Waist 71 76 81 89 99 112 Chest: Measure all round your chest just below...
£38.00
£38.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Lightning Bolt Kids Long Sleeve T-Shirt
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Notify me
Lightning Bolt Kids Long Sleeve T-Shirt
Lightning Bolt kids eco-friendly long sleeve t-shirtSize Guide Centimeters 3-4yrs 5-6yrs 7-8yrs 9-10yrs 11-12yrs Height 98 112 125 136 147 Chest 60 66 70 75 84 Chest: Measure all around your chest just below your armpits. Height: Your natural height If you fall between...
£18.00
£18.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Notify me
Union Jack Tote Bag
Earth
Quick Add
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Union Jack Tote Bag
Union Jack eco-friendly colour tote bagProduct Specification Organic Cotton Tote Bag. Twill Weave (170gsm). 37 x 42 cm (7cm gusset.) Made in India / Designed on the Isle of Wight. Wash Cool, Hang Dry.
£16.00
£16.00
Close
Notify me
Notify me
Prev Post
Next Post

Eco-Friendly Shop

Women's Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothing for Women Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable women’s clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies, vests, sweaters, shorts, and...
Shop Now

Men's Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothing for Men Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable men’s clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies, vests, sweaters, shorts, and...
Shop Now

Kids Clothing

Eco-Friendly Clothes for Kids Our online shop offers a wide range of sustainable kids clothing products, including t-shirts, hoodies and jumpers. Our garments...
Shop Now
Someone recently bought a
[time] ago, from [location]

Thanks for subscribing!

This email has been registered!

Shop the look

Choose Options

Earth Times
Sign up for exclusive updates, new arrivals & insider only discounts

Recently Viewed

Edit Option
Back In Stock Notification
this is just a warning
Login
Shopping Cart
0 items

Before you leave...

Take 20% off your first order

20% off

Enter the code below at checkout to get 20% off your first order

CODESALE20

Continue Shopping