Fwd: RE: Suitable for the arctic group?
David Harries
FYI.
------ Original Message ------
From: adele-...@rogers.com
To: jdsha...@bell.net
Sent: Tuesday, February 13th 2024, 04:31 PM
Subject: RE: Suitable for the arctic group?
Yes, this is suitable for the Arctic Security group = go ahead.
From: David Harries <jdsha...@bell.net>
Sent: Tuesday, February 13, 2024 2:10 PM
To: Buckley, Adele <adele-...@rogers.com>
Subject: Suitable for the arctic group?
Adele,
From my ever-more second-best* liked subscription - The London Times.
*after the Economist.
One reason for asking is, if this phenomenum becomes more widespread, as the north and Arctic everywhere warms>melt more and faster, it could become 'nature's equivalent of a 'war zone' for individuals and existing infrasrtucture, not to mention some very challenging questions for policies and plans for the future.
Has the mystery of Siberia’s craters been solved?
Tuesday February 13 2024, 12.01am GMT, The Times
Explanations for the craters range from meteor impacts to explosions of underground natural gas
AFP
Gigantic craters have appeared in parts of Siberia over the past decade. Eight of them, some measuring 160ft deep, 70ft wide and shaped like cylinders, were discovered in the northern regions of the Yamal and Gydan peninsulas. But what created these vast holes is a mystery.
Explanations range from meteor impacts to explosions of underground natural gas. In many parts of Siberia the permafrost — permanently frozen soil — is thawing out as temperatures rise at an alarming rate, faster than most other parts of the world. That warming has been linked to the release of natural gas that had previously been trapped in the frozen ground. But this does not explain why similar craters have not been seen anywhere else in Siberia, or indeed elsewhere in the Arctic where the permafrost is melting.
A new theory claims to have solved the mystery. The permafrost in the two Siberian peninsulas varies in thickness from a few hundred feet to 1,600ft deep. When the soil originally froze during the last ice age, ancient marine sediments rich in methane turned into huge deposits of natural gas, which over time produced heat that melted the permafrost from below, leaving pockets of gas under the permafrost.
In some places, the permafrost is linked to flows of heat from faults in the ground, melting and deforming the permafrost deeper underground. Together with the build-up of gas pressure and the melting permafrost at the surface, this triggered the collapse of the remaining intact permafrost with a mighty gas explosion, hurling debris out like a cork shot out from a bottle of champagne. Signs of the explosion can be seen from smaller craters dotted far around the large craters, as huge chunks of frozen permafrost were flung up by the explosion and then smashed into the ground.
The notion of massive gas explosions is not far-fetched. The region is abundant in natural gas, and in June 2017 reindeer herders also reported hearing an explosion, saw flames shoot up and smoke billow out from an eruption that led to the creation of a giant crater.
