Siberia’s Batagaika Depression Expands as Permafrost Thaws The Batagaika ‘crater’ in eastern Siberia is not a meteorite impact site but a massive thermokarst depression created by the collapse of permafrost beneath the surface. Located in the Republic of Sakha—the largest subnational region on Earth—the feature has grown from a small patch of exposed frozen ground after Soviet‑era logging and road‑building in the 1960s into a chasm roughly 2.5 kilometers long and nearly 1,000 meters wide. Over the last several years, it has expanded by about 14 meters per year in both length and width and deepened to cliffs taller than 50 meters. Warmer Siberian summers accelerate the melting of the underlying permafrost, which in turn exposes more ice‑rich soil to thaw, ensuring the depression continues to widen and deepen for the foreseeable future. Scientists see Batagaika as an accidental window into hundreds of thousands of years of geological history, with well‑preserved fossils of trees, animals, and vegetation that reveal past climates much warmer than the present. The pit has also yielded exceptionally preserved specimens such as a 42,000‑year‑old foal, a saber‑toothed tiger over 30,000 years old, and a 50,000‑year‑old baby mammoth. Yet, the thaw also raises concerns: ancient pathogens once trapped in the ice could re‑emerge, and the release of vast amounts of organic carbon stored in the permafrost adds carbon dioxide and methane to the atmosphere, reinforcing global warming. Estimates suggest Batagaika alone emits about 5,000 tons of CO₂ per year, underscoring how thawing permafrost can turn a local landform into a globally significant climate feedback.

Siberia’s Batagaika Depression Expands as Permafrost Thaws

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Usuarios: It's clickbait ⚠️

#batagaika #permafrost

View full AI summary:

This 1-2 week old #foal drowned 42,000 years ago. It was discovered in the #Batagaika Crater in 2018. An autopsy was performed in 2019, where it was discovered that the body still had liquid blood and urine. #permafrost

Das "Tor zur Hölle" wird immer größer – und das ist nur der Anfang Der durch tauenden Permafrost rasant wachsende riesige Batagaika-Krater in Sibirien verdeutlicht die Probleme, die der Klimawandel in der Arktis verursacht

www.derstandard.at/consent/tcf/...
#BatagaikaKrater #Batagaika #Klimawandel #Permafrost

Le cratère de Batagaika, le plus grand cratère de pergélisol du monde, s'agrandit rapidement - 2Tout2Rien Situé sur la rive gauche de la rivière Batagay en Sibérie, se trouve le plus grand cratère de pergélisol du monde, le cratère de Batagaika.

🌍 Le cratère de Batagaika, le plus grand cratère de pergélisol au monde, continue de s'agrandir rapidement. Un phénomène inquiétant lié au changement climatique. #Environnement #Climat #Science #Batagaika #Crater #ChangementClimatique #ecologie
www.2tout2rien.fr/le-cratere-d...

Earth's "Gateway To Hell" is going faster by 35 million cubic feet each year😲

The Batagaika Crater in Siberia, also known as the "Gateway to Hell" is the largest permafrost crater in the world.

#batagaika #crater #gatewaytohell #siberia #trending #gianthole #sciencefantasy