Relict pingos and permafrost - A comparison between active landforms in the Canadian Arctic and relict permafrost features in the Netherlands and adjacent Germany

Relict pingos and permafrost - A comparison between active landforms in the Canadian Arctic and relict permafrost features in the Netherlands and adjacent Germany

Ruiter, A

Molengraaff Fonds

2012

The development and occurrence of closed circular depressions in the Netherlands and Germany is still a point of uncertainty. Whether these depressions are pingo remnants or formed by other processes is important to know before using these depression as pingos in reconstructions of past climate conditions. More insight in the occurrence of these depressions and the sensitivity to climate change is important for understanding the response of the permafrost environment to climate change. This importance is not only restricted to past climate conditions: as the permafrost is now degrading in the high Arctic as well, understanding pingo response may help detect the impact of global warming which is an ongoing debate (pers. comm. Hans-Wolfgang Hubberten and Chris Burn). More insight in palaeoclimate reconstruction can help in understanding the process of degrading permafrost and the response of corresponding landforms (e.g. pingos) and can help to get insight in the seriousness of the contemporary permafrost degradation.

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:312c0442-15da-4254-a5c8-a1171bea205f

Utrecht University

Geoscience Reports

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