Russian researchers identified acidification of lakes during 1990s in Murmansk, Karelia, Archangelsk and Vologda regions and found up to 5% of lakes have acidification due to human causes in humid areas of European Russia and West Siberia. Nornickel was identified as the main contributor of sulphur dioxide SO2 in Kola and Norilsk areas. However since…
Category: Arctic
Understanding rain, snow and cyclones across the Barents Sea
[Ed. Alexander Kislov and his team are some of Russia’s leading climate scientists] Interest in the effect of warming temperatures in the Arctic continues to grow, with researchers studying a range of impacts such as reduced sea ice, animal migration, flora changes and overall adaptation. However building an overall picture takes multiple projects and multiple…
Siberian trees are telling the humans it’s too hot !
Increases in sea ice melt, permafrost melt and wildfires are observed whilst Siberian temperatures continue to escalate beyond previous records, for example 38°C last year inside the Arctic Circle. To understand the changes, researchers looked at proxy records. Historically in the Siberian Arctic they have mostly included low-resolution pollen records and laminated lake sediments. They…
Mounds of mires
Researchers from Tuvan and Tomsk universities wanted to understand the impact of climate change on palsa mires which are frozen mounds of peat bogs found in the highlands of southern Siberia. They are caused by permafrost and can be several metres high and up to several hundred km2 in area. When reading existing research they…
Permafrost and cryogenic monitoring in the western Russian Arctic.
Permafrost is currently analysed by reviewing temperatures at different layers compared with air and ground surface temperatures, depth of freezing and thawing, as well as overall coverage including snow and vegetation. Mean annual air temperature (MAAT) and mean annual ground temperatures (MAGT) are a widely used source of analysis with the practical measurements being completed…
Green canopies in the urban Russian Arctic
The majority of residents in cities in the Russian Arctic are not indigenous to the area (approx 95%), mostly migrating from the south and west. They are not used to Arctic ecosystems and the Arctic climate with lower temperatures, permafrost, less rich soil and having to adapt to differing light with polar days and nights….
Algae at the Baltic seaside
Scientists from Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, Kemerovo State University and Shirsov Institute of Oceanology at Russian Academy of Sciences analysed the algae biomass and what they might do with it. Increased concentration of algae is becoming more common on coastlines around the world. They release greenhouse gases , smell unpleasant and make beaches less…
An unusually windy, high salt diet of the Arctic Ocean
An international collaboration with Obukhov Institute of Atmospheric Physics at the Russian Academy of Sciences monitored the causes, impacts of circulation and sea ice decline in the Arctic Ocean between 2000 – 2019. Sea ice decline, and atmospheric warming affect the distribution of fresh and saline water with the changing currents. The researchers created simulations…
Building a national permafrost picture benefits everyone
Up until now, multiple institutions across Russia monitor permafrost and focus on local results. Oil and gas industries do not share their permafrost results with each other. Human impact from energy industries has cumulatively increased permafrost temperature which further affects their infrastructure. The researchers recommend a new state monitoring system which can be linked to…
Russian Climate Research 