From Florida State University and the department of we’ve heard all this before comes this story
Researchers: Permafrost thawing could accelerate global warming
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A team of researchers lead by Florida State University have found new evidence that permafrost thawing is releasing large quantities of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere via plants, which could accelerate warming trends.
The research is featured in the newest edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
“We’ve known for a while now that permafrost is thawing,” said Suzanne Hodgkins, the lead author on the paper and a doctoral student in chemical oceanography at Florida State. “But what we’ve found is that the associated changes in plant community composition in the polar regions could lead to way more carbon being released into the atmosphere as methane.”
Permafrost is soil that is frozen year round and is typically located in polar regions. As the world has gotten slightly warmer, that permafrost is thawing and decomposing, which is producing increased amounts of methane.
Relative to carbon dioxide, methane has a disproportionately large global warming potential. Methane is 33 times more effective at warming the Earth on a mass basis and a century time scale relative to carbon dioxide.
As the plants break down, they are releasing carbon into the atmosphere. And if the permafrost melts entirely, there would be five times the amount of carbon in the atmosphere than there is now, said Jeff Chanton, the John Widmer Winchester Professor of Oceanography at Florida State.
“The world is getting warmer, and the additional release of gas would only add to our problems,” he said.
Chanton and Hodgkins’ work, “Changes in peat chemistry associated with permafrost thaw increase greenhouse gas production,” was funded by a three-year, $400,000 Department of Energy grant. They traveled to Sweden multiple times to collect soil samples for the study.
The research is a multicontinent effort with researchers from North America, Europe and Australia all contributing to the work.
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The old jokes are always the best!
In another few years the same people will be warning us of the coming ice age!
“permafrost thawing is releasing large quantities of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere via plants, which could accelerate warming trends.”
Would that be CO2 & methane containing “old” carbon? (Or a higher % of “old” carbon).
Could this lead to a false conclusion that it is man’s CO2 building up in the atmosphere?
So, how did the permafrost form if the air was full of CO2 that the permafrost trapped? These people have no sense of irony.
methane is the new co2 lol
which bit of interglacial warming do they not understand.
which bit of ice age cycle do they not get?
its all happened before.
the melting ice is revealing forests and human activity like Stone Age leather shoes and trousers.
fear is not a scientific term. its a political one. science is there to dispel fears and superstitions not create them.
Maybe the permafrost in Greenland will melt so we can dig up some of those Viking farmer graves still locked solid after 800 years.
Four hundred grand for a jolly to Sweden? Not to be sniffed at.
Money for nothing more than rehashed waffle and discredited waffle at that and based upon faulty assumptions into the bargain. This is how the new pseudo science works, appeal to those with control of the funding stream and the sky is the limit really, fail to roll over and sit up and beg and the funding tap fails to turn on for some strange reason.
“……. 5 times the amount of carbon in the atmosphere ….” says Prof. Chanton.
Too many Dreamliners?
So it’s 33 times worserer than we thought?
“Methane is 33 times more effective at warming the Earth on a mass basis and a century time scale relative to carbon dioxide.”
At ~18ppBILLION/v I don’t think so!
“As the plants break down, they are releasing carbon into the atmosphere. And if the permafrost melts entirely, there would be five times the amount of carbon in the atmosphere than there is now,” said Jeff Chanton, the John Widmer Winchester Professor of Oceanography at Florida State.
A moment’s thought would show this statement was complete BS. During the last ice age, which ended 10-12,000 years ago, glaciers scoured the Earth’s surface while wind, snow and rain removed most of the remaining soil and vegetation from the high latitude, permafrost areas.
In geological terms, the permafrost soils are recent, mostly less than 10-12,000 years old.
The carbon in the dead vegetation in the permafrost areas was nearly all deposited over the past 12,000 years, but especially during the Holocene Optimum period of 9.000 – 5,000 years ago. Is there any evidence from ice cores, or other sources, that huge amounts of CO2 were being extracted from the atmosphere at that time?
Answer: No.
Conclusion: Comment is typical unfounded climate alarmism.
So….18 billion somethings times 5 times carbon amounts multiplied by 33 worsts equals a very very baaaad thing…
Permafear
To find WUWT threads countering this permafrost/methane alarmism, click
http://wattsupwiththat.com/?s=permafrost
Several turn up in the first page.
…funded by a three-year, $400,000 Department of Energy
grant.In case the previous was not clear
grantYeah, right. They go to Sweden to collect soil samples, then generalize to the whole world?
Besides, the polar regions have been ice-free in the past and there was no runaway global warming from methane release, so why should it happen this time?
ConfusedPhoton says:
April 8, 2014 at 12:34 am
The old jokes are always the best!
I was passing the grave yard and heard strange musical coming from a grave. The vicar told me it was Beethoven decomposing.
Geez, we didn’t buy de CO2 crap so now they go for methane… Whats next? O2?
Oh, and if the permafrost does melt entirely and results in five times the amount of carbon in the atmosphere than there is now, that would bring atmospheric CO2 to around 2,000 ppm. CO2 levels have been more than twice that—and during an ice age too!
You notice the current concentration of methane in parts per BILLION are never mentioned ..
just in case we get the idea that it’s all really rather trivial and nothing to get warmed up about..
jauntycyclist says:
April 8, 2014 at 12:51 am
“[…]
fear is not a scientific term. its a political one. science is there to dispel fears and superstitions not create them.”
============================
Excellent point.
And if all the permafrost melts, then the earth was already warm and the extra CO2 wouldn’t make it much warmer but would greatly help all the plants and the animals that eat plants.
Chanton and Hodgkins’ work, “Changes in peat chemistry associated with permafrost thaw increase greenhouse gas production,” was funded by a three-year, $400,000 Department of Energy grant. They traveled to Sweden multiple times to collect soil samples for the study.
Perhaps they could have saved the $taxpayer a few bob by collecting sufficient samples in “one” visit, e.g. the first visit!!!!! Sheesh! The sky grew dark last night, I expect it meant the end of the world because the Sun died! Oh no my mistake, it’s back this morning! sarc off.
As we head into uncharted waters in non, Meloncovitch cyclic global warming, Topography expands north and south of the Equator. Permafrost is probably doing what they say but for the wrong outcome. The Carbons are there for the expanding Topography.
“They have the Cart before the Horse”, again.
It is unfortunate that another IPCC inspired science paper has made the Headlines. Of a humorous note not too many Floridians get out of state and live in a swamp or on a beach. Most have never seen a mountain, a Canyon or a large river. To understand Topography, one has to travel from the Equator to Pruhoe Bay and at least three continents.
So scratch up another one for the IPCC in its never ending battle to subdue the USA and allow India to soak us for some more cash. one should see who runs the IPCC and who stands to gain from it.
Paul
ummm.?. how did the peat get there in the first place if the area has always been frozen?