Awakening Giant: Monitoring Permafrost & Climate Change from Space

Arctic permafrost landscapes are a significant carbon sink, binding approximately twice the amount of carbon currently stored in the atmosphere. As climate change thaws this permafrost, the stored carbon is released as carbon dioxide and methane. This release drives additional effects, known as the permafrost carbon feedback, which in turn exacerbates global warming., threatening infrastructure and triggering landslides or rockfalls in mountainous regions. Thawing permafrost can also endanger infrastructure by destabilising the ground beneath it, or by contributing to landslides and rockfalls in mountainous regions with permafrost.

Monitoring and mapping the global decline of permafrost due to climate change is a complex task, given that it is a subsurface phenomenon. Global permafrost models are already capable of providing reliable estimates at both the global and regional levels. However, as these models often depend on point-based data acquisitions, such as boreholes or fieldwork, their spatial coverage and resolution are often too coarse for precise distribution modelling of permafrost at a local scale. Air- and spaceborne remote sensing data offer the ability to partially overcome these limitations spatially and temporally through recurrent measurements from above.

The overall objective of this doctoral dissertation is to use radar remote sensing data and methods, as well as other remote sensing sources (thermal and optical), to monitor permafrost-related ground movements and model the recession of permafrost retreat at a higher resolution and precision. The research will focus on Fennoscandia for Arctic permafrost and the Himalayas for mountain-related permafrost.

Remote Sensing is a very powerful and a highly effective technique in this field. However, it is still crucial to obtain ground truth data from the field to validate the permafrost models. Furthermore, it is imperative to acquire knowledge and experience from local partners in the areas of interest to ensure success in this field of research.
Therefore, the IRB plays a pivotal role in strengthening the collaboration with our partner university in Oulu, Finland, through the facilitation of recurrent research stays. From there, field research will be planned and conducted in the permafrost regions of Fennoscandia. The IRB also facilitates the presentation of research results at international conferences, which will help to grow my network with scientists worldwide and may thus open up opportunities to bring future research projects in this field to RUB.