Submitted by Anonymous on Thu, 09/05/2013 - 18:02
Forums
Arctic Sunlight and Microbial Interactions

Hey Mr. T! So in the article, Kling says, "What we can say now is that regardless of how fast the thawing of the Arctic permafrost occurs, the conversion of this soil carbon to carbon dioxide and its release into the atmosphere will be faster than we previously thought," yet later in the article, the author says that "just how much permafrost will thaw in the future and how fast the carbon dioxide will be released is a topic of heated debate among climate scientists", therefore making the answer of how fast the carbon would hypothetically be released a controversial topic, and seemingly even a mystery. I'm wondering why Kling said that the conversion will be "faster than [he] previously thought", and what proof he has to justify his statement? Hope you had a good summer! -Lizz Bogaard

Sat, 09/07/2013 - 03:49

Anonymous

Lizz -
This is definitely a topic of debate among climate scientists, as the author says. According to Dr. Kling and Dr. Cory who I worked with, their research shows that exposure to sunlight increases the rate of CO2 production - but not all scientists agree. Dr. Kling & Dr. Cory have a lot of evidence from years of fieldwork, lab analyses of samples, and specific experiments designed to test their hypotheses, but they're also continuing to study the question, as are other scientists. One of the things we're going to try and do in class this year is to understand the degree of uncertainty related to climate change. Some things, like long-term warming trends, are pretty well established while other things, like future predictions, are much more uncertain.
- Mr. T