IPA and the International Polar Year (IPY)

Click here for detailed information on IPA and IPY

The International University Courses on Permafrost, IUCP

Click here for information on IUCP.

Frozen Ground 2007

Large retrogressive thaw slump, northwest Alaska

Large retrogressive thaw slump, northwest Alaska (66˚29’51''N, 157˚36 '27 ''W). This 2004 slump was triggered by lateral erosion of the Selawik River into buried glacier ice at a depth of 30 m. During summer 2007, an estimated 25,000 to 60,000 tons of sediments were removed from the slump, causing downstream impacts on local subsidence, commercial and sports fishing (inconnu or coney, Stenodus leucicthys). The slump discharged about 250g/l of suspended sediments at a rate of 100 l/sec from thawing permafrost during the summer season. Since 2004, sediments deposited in the spawning area (40 km from the slump) is estimated at 36,000 tons with the riverbed completely covered by sediments. Impacts to Selawik River inconnu may not be known until this aged cohort reaches maturity in about 7 to 12 years. Photograph and information provided by Kenji Yoshikawa, University of Alaska Fairbanks.

Photo from front cover of Frozen Ground 2007.

Forthcoming Permafrost Conferences

2008 NICOP (PLEASE NOTE NEW DATES FOR NICOP BELOW)

NICOP, 9^th International Conference on Permafrost, June 29-July 3, 2008, Fairbanks, Alaska, U.S.A.

Click here for brochure (pdf).

Pre-registration for NICOP: Click here.

11 May 2007: NEW NICOP INFORMATION is now available. Click here.

2008 August 5-28

Melnikov Centenary International Forum for Young Scientists: The Present and Future of Geocryology. Yakutsk , Russia.

Click here to download invitation.

Latest update: 15 June 2008 by Ole Humlum University of Oslo

visits since 3. January 2007