Woods Hole Research Center

An Arctic Solution to Global Warming:

As the climate warms, frozen Arctic soils (called permafrost) are thawing. When the soils thaw, some of the vast quantities of ancient carbon they contain is released to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide and methane. This causes additional warming, which leads to more permafrost thaw, release of more greenhouse gases, and so on. In this video, Dr. Max Holmes discusses a controversial experiment underway in a remote corner of the Siberian Arctic to see whether the reintroduction of mega-herbivores (including musk oxen, bison, elk, and horses) will reshape the landscape in ways that will help keep the permafrost frozen, thus slowing global warming.

Boreal Forest & Arctic Tundra Dynamics:

The circumpolar boreal forest is an integral part of the global ecosystem, with important influences on the global cycling of energy, carbon and water. Over the past 30 years, global boreal forests have experienced a significant amount of warming and drying which, if trends continue as predicted, are likely to induce feedbacks that may further influence global climate. The goal of the Woods Hole Research Center’s work in this region is to quantify the magnitude and variability of carbon exchange, assess the mechanisms by which fire disturbance influences these processes, and characterize how changes in these ecosystems respond to and are influencing climate.

Fire and Carbon Sequestration in Boreal North America:

One focus for Woods Hole Research Center scientists studying boreal North America explores how carbon sequestration rates following fire vary across the entire boreal forest region on an inter-annual basis. This work requires accurate measurements of carbon fluxes at fine spatial and temporal scales over large areas. Field studies bring WHRC researchers to a number of different locations throughout the North American boreal region. Conducting research in northern, southern, and central boreal zones allows the observation of ecosystem processes across a wider range of landscape types, and allows for a more comprehensive understanding of the North American boreal system.