Un reportage à Découverte de Radio-Canada avec Oliver Sonnentag.
Face au réchauffement de la planète, les scientifiques tirent la sonnette d’alarme : il est temps de prendre conscience des pouvoirs de la tourbe. D’un labo de biopharmacie en Irlande à la plus grande tourbière d’Europe, en passant par la cabane d’un piégeur et la plus vaste expérience sur le changement climatique, Le secret des tourbières nous dévoile la beauté et les merveilles des tourbières. Avec Oliver Sonnentag, à la minute 22:45.
The OCSNRS is an annual student academic conference focusing on Subarctic, Arctic and Antarctic research from natural & physical sciences, social sciences, humanities and applied sciences.
This year the University of Ottawa hosted the meeting which featured a number of permafrost presentations from the network:
Galina Jonat – A proposed Framework for Improved Simulations of Permafrost Change.
Frederic Brieger – Permafrost Terrain Disturbance Mapping and Susceptibility Modeling in the Na-Cho Nyäk Ge (Stewart River) Watershed, Yukon.
Rae Landriau – Performance of Drilling Waste Sumps – Mackenzie Delta NT.
Pia Blake – Effects of Snow and Surface Material on Surface Offset of Intermediate Slopes.
Astrid Schetselaar will be presenting Climate change induced increases in maintenance costs for Yukon highways, 1994–2022.
Date: 17 April 2024 Time: 13:00-14:00 Eastern Time Location: Zoom (details are posted in our Teams site).
Transportation networks in Canada’s North are becoming increasingly vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Rising ground temperatures and permafrost thaw have been a cause of road damage as the bearing capacity of the ground is significantly reduced. Hydrological changes may further induce hazards, such as landslides, washouts, and icings (aufeis). Astrid’s presentation will outline a retrospective assessment of climate change-induced maintenance expenditures for highways in Yukon. Changes in costs are linked to climate, physiographic, conditions and underlying permafrost.
The 2024 Winter edition of our newsletter is now available in French and English.
This issue has highlights of recent and upcoming events, details on support for Northern Research Assistants and share recent network publications you may have missed. In November last year, the network convened for our fifth Annual General Meeting. Photos, posters, presentations and other details of the event are on our website where you can also download a full report on the meeting.
A study of thermal modeling parameters and their impact on modelled permafrost responses to climate warming
A study by Khatereh Roghangar and Jocelyn Hayley has assessed the effects of thermal modeling parameters on permafrost ground response to climate warming. They analyzed how variations in depth, water content, and soil type affect predictions of future active layer depths and settlement under various climate scenarios using the soil characteristics along Hudson Bay Railway corridor.
The results indicate that, for fine-grained soils, the depth of the model is a more significant parameter than for coarse-grained soils. The water content of all soil types is a critical factor in determining the time at which permafrost thaws and the depth at which the active layer is located, as higher water content leads to larger active layer changes and more settlement in most cases. These findings have important implications for infrastructure and land use management in the Arctic region.
Roghangar, K. and Hayley, J.L. (2024). A study of thermal modeling parameters and their impact on modelled permafrost responses to climate warming. Cold Regions Science and Technology, 221, 104155, DOI: 10.1016/j.coldregions.2024.104155.
The study area showing the Hudson Bay Railway extending from Churchill to The Pas, Manitoba.
Non-destructive multi-sensor core logging allows for rapid imaging and estimation of frozen bulk density and volumetric ice content in permafrost cores
Exciting research in the Permafrost ArChives Science Laboratory (PACS Lab) at the University of Alberta has demonstrated a novel application of multi-sensor core logging for analyzing permafrost cores.
Measurements of core physical properties are typically destructive and time intensive.
Non-destructive multi-sensor core logging (MSCL) can efficiently analyze permafrost samples and provide high-resolution insights without these problems. The new technique allows rapid imaging, measurement of bulk density and estimation of ice content in permafrost cores. The team were able to visualize cryostructures and estimate frozen bulk density, magnetic susceptibility, and volumetric ice content.
The new technique is described in the paper published in The Cryosphere by Duane Froese’s lab: Pumple, J., Monteath, A., Harvey, J., Roustaei, M., Alvarez, A., Buchanan, C., and Froese, D.: Non-destructive multi-sensor core logging allows for rapid imaging and estimation of frozen bulk density and volumetric ice content in permafrost cores, The Cryosphere, 18, 489–503, https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-18-489-2024, 2024.
“What happens in the North, doesn’t stay in the North”
The LEAP program aims to train tomorrow’s Leaders in Permafrost thaw and northern research by training and providing research funding to graduate students who will work alongside co-applicants or partnered universities across Canada on permafrost science and research. Undergraduate students are also welcome to apply for unfunded research opportunities alongside the program’s co-grantee and collaborators, which they can use to complete their thesis.
You can read more about the NSERC CREATE LEAP program in the feature on Carleton University’s news on experiential learning.
Performance of climate projections for Yukon and adjacent Northwest Territories.
The design of infrastructure on permafrost must account for the impacts of a changing climate on ground stability. While guidelines like CSA PLUS 4011:19 provide a framework, choosing appropriate climate scenarios remains a challenge.
The study by Astrid Schetselaar, Trevor Anderson and Chris Burn reveals that observed warming in the Yukon and Northwest Territories (1991-2020) aligns with more extreme climate projections made in 2003 for the Mackenzie Gas Project.
Key takeaways for developers:
Consider adopting more aggressive climate change scenarios when designing permafrost foundations, as these projections have been more accurate.
Near-surface permafrost in southern parts of the region may become unsustainable. Thorough site investigations for thaw-stable soils are crucial.
Rising winter temperatures imply that the operational efficacy of thermosyphons, used to chill foundations, may be impeded. At sites where preservation of frozen ground is essential for infrastructure integrity, the number of thermosyphons required may need to increase.
Schetselaar, A.B., Andersen, T.S., and Burn, C.R. 2023. Performance of climate projections for Yukon and adjacent Northwest Territories, 1991-2020. Arctic, 76(3). doi: 10.14430/arctic77263
Yukon Territory and western Northwest Territories, including Mackenzie Mountains and adjacent Mackenzie River Valley, with locations of all weather stations.
The NSERC PermafrostNet seminar video for November is now available.
Erika Hille presented her seminar on Characterizing the response of Arctic streams and rivers to permafrost thaw. Erika walked through her research on the relationships between thawing permafrost and water chemistry, covering Caribou creek, Rengleng river and the Miner river.
