Climate Change Infographic: 'Frozen Carbon'
From the New York Times:
Perennially frozen ground, known as permafrost, underlies nearly a quarter of the Northern Hemisphere and stores a huge amount of carbon.ANCIENT PLANTS removed carbon from the atmosphere by absorbing carbon dioxide. When the plants died, much of their stored carbon was trapped and frozen in layers of soil and glacial silt.
OVER THOUSANDS OF YEARS the layers of soil and debris built up to form a deep layer of continuously frozen ground, called permafrost, which now contains twice as much carbon as the entire atmosphere.
CARBON ESCAPES when organic material in permafrost thaws and decomposes. Carbon dioxide is released in aerated areas, but in lakes and wetlands carbon bubbles up as methane, an especially potent greenhouse gas.
The infographic accompanies the New York Times article, ‘As Permafrost Thaws, Scientists Study the Risks’.
5 months ago
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