Collaborative NNA Research

There is great concern about changing conditions in the Arctic due to environmental transformations that are impacting tundra and its underlying permafrost. At the same time, there are major gaps in our understanding of tundra/permafrost microbiology and elemental cycling. Filling these knowledge gaps will enable a better overall understanding of the tundra, and can provide crucial information about how this globally important, but fragile ecosystem will respond to change.

The rapid warming of the Arctic and melting of Arctic sea and land ice has ramifications around the globe. Shipping routes through an ice-free Arctic in combination with modifications to ocean circulation and regional climate patterns linked to Arctic ice melt affect trade, transportation, coastal ecology and hydrology, human-built infrastructure, demographics and cultural identities, fish and wildlife, energy resources, and air and water quality—not only in the Arctic but also in mid-latitude coastal regions such as New England.

Across North America, Arctic and boreal regions have been warming at a rate two to three times higher than the global average. At the same time, human development continues to encroach and intensify, primarily due to demand for natural resources, such as oil and gas. The vast and remote nature of Arctic-boreal regions typify their landscapes, environment, wildlife, and people, but their size and isolation also make it difficult to study how their ecosystems are changing.

Permanently frozen soils, or permafrost, often contain large amounts of ground ice, which make it vulnerable to climate change and human activities. These soils are protected from melting by a surface layer which thaws in summer and refreezes in winter, and a near-surface layer, termed the transition zone. This transition zone, which develops through complex interactions between the environment and permafrost, controls permafrost resilience to ground surface subsidence (thermokarst).