Sunday, August 22, 2010

Things you have to think about while helping your children this week ...

or .... more on methane ... something to ponder on the way to work, or school, or errands, next week ...

Methane Gas Release from Arctic Permafrost is Far Larger Than Expected

Ocean-bottom permafrost contains vast amounts of carbon, and many experts are concerned that its release as methane gas would create a dangerous feedback loop in which increased greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere would lead to warmer temperatures, which in turn would lead to further melting of permafrost, further releases of methane, and further atmospheric warming.

“Wetlands and permafrost soils, including the sub-sea permafrost under the Arctic Ocean, contain at least twice the amount of carbon that is currently in the atmosphere as carbon dioxide,” explains Martin Heimann, author of a Perspectives article related to the research.
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