J. Murton, T. Opel, S. Wetterich, K. Ashastina, G. Savvinov, P. Danilov, V. Boeskorov
{"title":"Batagay megaslump: A review of the permafrost deposits, Quaternary environmental history, and recent development","authors":"J. Murton, T. Opel, S. Wetterich, K. Ashastina, G. Savvinov, P. Danilov, V. Boeskorov","doi":"10.1002/ppp.2194","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"The Batagay megaslump, in the Yana Uplands of northern Yakutia, Russia, is the largest known retrogressive thaw slump in the world. The slump exposes a remarkable sequence of Ice Age permafrost deposits that record the interaction of colluvial, eolian and periglacial processes on a hillslope episodically forested during the last 650 ka or more in response to climate variability on glacial–interglacial timescales. Numerous bones, teeth, and occasional carcasses of Pleistocene and Holocene mammals have been recovered from the permafrost. The megaslump developed over the course of several decades in three stages: (1) gullying, (2) thaw slumping, and (3) megaslumping. After disturbance to the taiga vegetation cover in the 1940s–1960s, a hillslope gully formed by the early 1960s. The gully initiated thaw slumping along its central part during the 1980s, with the slump enlarging to megaslump (>20 ha) proportions during the 1990s. By 2019, the area of the slump had reached about 80 ha and its headwall above the slump floor was up to about 55 m high. The main geomorphic processes of slump growth are headwall ablation and thermal erosion, producing a distinctive terrain of icy badlands on the slump floor. Though much of the megaslump is rapidly growing at present, it will probably stabilize eventually as an irregular terrain characterized by sandy ridges and sand‐filled elongate depressions formed by degradation of the badlands. Comparison of the Batagay megaslump with megaslumps from northwest Canada reveals several similarities and differences in terms of their geomorphology, permafrost deposits, and Quaternary history.","PeriodicalId":54629,"journal":{"name":"Permafrost and Periglacial Processes","volume":"34 1","pages":"399 - 416"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0000,"publicationDate":"2023-05-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Permafrost and Periglacial Processes","FirstCategoryId":"89","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ppp.2194","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"GEOGRAPHY, PHYSICAL","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The Batagay megaslump, in the Yana Uplands of northern Yakutia, Russia, is the largest known retrogressive thaw slump in the world. The slump exposes a remarkable sequence of Ice Age permafrost deposits that record the interaction of colluvial, eolian and periglacial processes on a hillslope episodically forested during the last 650 ka or more in response to climate variability on glacial–interglacial timescales. Numerous bones, teeth, and occasional carcasses of Pleistocene and Holocene mammals have been recovered from the permafrost. The megaslump developed over the course of several decades in three stages: (1) gullying, (2) thaw slumping, and (3) megaslumping. After disturbance to the taiga vegetation cover in the 1940s–1960s, a hillslope gully formed by the early 1960s. The gully initiated thaw slumping along its central part during the 1980s, with the slump enlarging to megaslump (>20 ha) proportions during the 1990s. By 2019, the area of the slump had reached about 80 ha and its headwall above the slump floor was up to about 55 m high. The main geomorphic processes of slump growth are headwall ablation and thermal erosion, producing a distinctive terrain of icy badlands on the slump floor. Though much of the megaslump is rapidly growing at present, it will probably stabilize eventually as an irregular terrain characterized by sandy ridges and sand‐filled elongate depressions formed by degradation of the badlands. Comparison of the Batagay megaslump with megaslumps from northwest Canada reveals several similarities and differences in terms of their geomorphology, permafrost deposits, and Quaternary history.
期刊介绍:
Permafrost and Periglacial Processes is an international journal dedicated to the rapid publication of scientific and technical papers concerned with earth surface cryogenic processes, landforms and sediments present in a variety of (Sub) Arctic, Antarctic and High Mountain environments. It provides an efficient vehicle of communication amongst those with an interest in the cold, non-glacial geosciences. The focus is on (1) original research based on geomorphological, hydrological, sedimentological, geotechnical and engineering aspects of these areas and (2) original research carried out upon relict features where the objective has been to reconstruct the nature of the processes and/or palaeoenvironments which gave rise to these features, as opposed to purely stratigraphical considerations. The journal also publishes short communications, reviews, discussions and book reviews. The high scientific standard, interdisciplinary character and worldwide representation of PPP are maintained by regional editorial support and a rigorous refereeing system.