The Arctic tundra of Alaska features a picturesque landscape, teeming with plants and wildlife. But below ground lies a significant threat to the environment. As temperatures rise around the globe, layers of soil known as permafrost, which have been frozen for up to thousands of years, are beginning to thaw. And with that, threatening to release massive amounts of trapped greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. To study these dramatic changes, the U.S. Department of Energy launched the Next-Generation Ecosystem Experiments, or NGEE Arctic, project. NGEE brings together an interdisciplinary team to study the complex scientific processes that occur as the permafrost starts to thaw. In this episode, you'll hear members of the team discuss their research, what it's like to work in the Arctic tundra - including a wildlife story or two.
