Contribution of high-latitude permafrost regions in the Northern Hemisphere to global wildfire carbon emissions

IF 6 2区 地球科学 Q1 GEOSCIENCES, MULTIDISCIPLINARY
Xingru Zhu, Xiyan Xu, Gensuo Jia
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Abstract

Wildfires are major disturbances in permafrost ecosystems, with increasing frequency and intensity in recent years. In permafrost regions, wildfires not only burn surface and subsurface organic matter but also accelerate permafrost thawing, releasing significant amounts of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane into the atmosphere. However, the contribution of high-latitude permafrost regions in the Northern Hemisphere to global wildfire carbon emissions remains poorly understood. This study integrates remote sensing data and ground observations to analyze the contributions of aboveground and belowground fuel combustion in high-latitude permafrost regions to global wildfire carbon emissions from 2002 to 2020, as well as the spatiotemporal variations in these contributions. Our findings indicate that permafrost regions contribute approximately 11.96% of global wildfire carbon emissions, with aboveground emissions accounting for approximately 3.94% of global aboveground emissions and belowground emissions contributing approximately 63.57% of global belowground emissions. The contribution of high-latitude permafrost regions to global emissions peaked in July and August, whereas the continuous permafrost zones (areas with more than 90% permafrost coverage) showed the most significant increase in June and July. The contributions of both aboveground and belowground emissions from high-latitude permafrost regions to global wildfire emissions have been increasing, primarily due to the reduction in global wildfire emissions, in contrast with the rising emissions from wildfires in high-latitude permafrost regions. This study highlights the significant role of wildfires, particularly the combustion of belowground biomass in high-latitude permafrost regions, in global carbon emissions. The decomposition and combustion of organic carbon in permafrost regions due to wildfires release more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, potentially amplifying the positive feedback between atmospheric greenhouse gas accumulation and climate warming.

北半球高纬度永久冻土地区对全球野火碳排放的贡献
野火是永冻土生态系统的主要干扰因素,近年来其发生频率和强度不断增加。在永久冻土地区,野火不仅会燃烧地表和地下有机物,还会加速永久冻土融化,向大气释放大量二氧化碳和甲烷等温室气体。然而,人们对北半球高纬度永久冻土地区在全球野火碳排放中所占的比例仍然知之甚少。本研究整合了遥感数据和地面观测数据,分析了 2002 年至 2020 年期间高纬度永久冻土地区地面和地下燃料燃烧对全球野火碳排放的贡献,以及这些贡献的时空变化。我们的研究结果表明,永久冻土地区约占全球野火碳排放量的 11.96%,其中地上排放量约占全球地上排放量的 3.94%,地下排放量约占全球地下排放量的 63.57%。高纬度永久冻土区对全球排放量的贡献在 7 月和 8 月达到峰值,而连续永久冻土区(永久冻土覆盖率超过 90% 的地区)在 6 月和 7 月的增幅最为显著。高纬度永久冻土地区的地上和地下排放量对全球野火排放量的贡献一直在增加,这主要是由于全球野火排放量的减少,而与此形成鲜明对比的是高纬度永久冻土地区野火排放量的上升。这项研究强调了野火在全球碳排放中的重要作用,尤其是高纬度永久冻土地区地下生物质的燃烧。野火导致的永冻土地区有机碳的分解和燃烧向大气释放了更多的温室气体,有可能扩大大气温室气体积累与气候变暖之间的正反馈。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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来源期刊
Science China Earth Sciences
Science China Earth Sciences GEOSCIENCES, MULTIDISCIPLINARY-
CiteScore
9.60
自引率
5.30%
发文量
135
审稿时长
3-8 weeks
期刊介绍: Science China Earth Sciences, an academic journal cosponsored by the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the National Natural Science Foundation of China, and published by Science China Press, is committed to publishing high-quality, original results in both basic and applied research.
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