Permafrost dynamics at the Fairbanks Permafrost Experimental Station near Fairbanks, Alaska
Citation
Douglas, T. A., Jorgenson, M. T., Kanevskiy, Mikhail Z., Romanovsky, V. E., Shur, Yuri, and Yoshikawa, K., Permafrost dynamics at the Fairbanks Permafrost Experimental Station near Fairbanks, Alaska: Institute of Northern Engineering, University of Alaska Fairbanks, v. 1, p. 373-378.
Summary
The Fairbanks Permafrost Experimental Station was established in 1945 near Fairbanks, Alaska. In 1946 vegetation was removed from two plots (the Linell plots) to investigate the impacts of vegetation disturbance on permafrost degradation. We revisited the sites in 2007 to evaluate the permafrost table using probes and direct current electrical resistivity. The permafrost table has expanded downward to 9.8 m at a site where all surface vegetation and organic material was removed. The permafrost surface has remained at 4.7 m depth since 1972 at a second site where vegetation was removed but organic material was left intact. In 2005 a Circumpolar Active Layer Monitoring Network (CALM) site was established at an undisturbed plot nearby [...]
Summary
The Fairbanks Permafrost Experimental Station was established in 1945 near Fairbanks, Alaska. In 1946 vegetation was removed from two plots (the Linell plots) to investigate the impacts of vegetation disturbance on permafrost degradation. We revisited the sites in 2007 to evaluate the permafrost table using probes and direct current electrical resistivity. The permafrost table has expanded downward to 9.8 m at a site where all surface vegetation and organic material was removed. The permafrost surface has remained at 4.7 m depth since 1972 at a second site where vegetation was removed but organic material was left intact. In 2005 a Circumpolar Active Layer Monitoring Network (CALM) site was established at an undisturbed plot nearby to provide a baseline assessment of the permafrost. The response of permafrost at the site to the hypothesized future climatic warming of the Alaskan Interior can be assessed, once a long-term record is available.
