Retreating glaciers within the Arctic are exposing groundwater springs containing very excessive concentrations of methane, which can add important portions of the greenhouse gasoline to the ambiance.
“This can be a novel methane emissions pathway that we hadn’t recognized earlier than,” says Gabrielle Kleber on the College of Cambridge.
Tons of of springs have emerged on the base of retreating glaciers throughout the Norwegian Arctic archipelago of Svalbard. Kleber was intrigued by the springs, partly due to their “sulphuric, eggy scent”. Though methane is odourless, microbes in high-methane circumstances generally produce gases like hydrogen sulphide which have this distinctive scent. “We knew …