In Yakutia the Batagayka basin expands with awesome speed
Scientists of the Institute of Applied Ecology of the North of the North-Eastern Federal University returned from the expedition to the Verkhoyansk region, where they studied the thermokarst basin of Batagayk and exposed the Ulyahan-Sular area on the bank of the Adycha River. Scientists from the University of Sussex (Great Britain) and the Senckenberg Institute (Germany) took part in the trip.
The peculiarity of the investigated territory, scientists note, is in sediments with the age of 200 thousand years on the sides of Batagayka. It was here in 2009 that the carcass of a young bison and the mummy of an ancient horse were found. Based on these findings in the basin area, the scientific hospital of the NEFU was established.
Researchers also studied the issue of the growth of the incision, which particularly worries local residents. “The Batagay section will grow, it grows very quickly – in the year the edges expand by 15-20 meters,” one of the expedition members, Sussex University professor Julian Murton, shared the forecast. According to the scientist, this process will continue until all the ice has melted, allowing the basin to expand. “If you look at the phenomenon from a geological point of view, we will see: in the past, about 10 thousand years ago, climatic warming took place in central and northern Yakutia, Alaska and Canada, which provoked the thawing of such ravines, lakes and depressions. Seeing that the climate is warming, we assume that such thermal basins will be formed everywhere – this is a natural cycle, “the scientist said.
In confirmation of the words of the colleague, Thomas Opel, a researcher at the University of Sussex, noted that scientists at the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar Research in Germany monitor the rate of destruction of the basin using satellite imagery. Observers note that the dynamics of the increase in the profile in recent years is growing.
Thomas Opel suggests that the formation of the basin in the Verkhoyansk region can bear anthropogenic character. “Usually such formations are due to damage to the soil cover of the earth: deforestation, industrial work, or because a road that was used all year round passed through this area,” the scientist said, adding that they do not yet state the exact cause of the formation Can.
The scientific employee of the Senckenberg Institute Ksenia Ashastina noted that due to the study of soil, plant and ancient sediment samples, it is possible to reconstruct the landscape ecosystem and predict the future course of the climate change, which is actual with the current climate change. “We hope that following the results of the expedition and laboratory work we will get a complete picture of the ancient ecosystem of the Batagayk Basin,” the scientist emphasized.
Reference:
Termokarstovaya hollow in permafrost The Batagayka is located at the foot of the Kirgilyakh mountain in the Verkhoyansk region, seven kilometers from the village of Batagay. Its depth is up to 100 meters, its width is 800 meters, its length is more than a kilometer.
Translation: Google
Source: Yakutia.com
