A Century (1910–2008) of change in a collapsing pingo, Parry Peninsula, Western Arctic Coast, Canada

Auteur(s) et Affiliation(s)

MACKAY, J.R.

Dep. of Geography, Univ. of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada

BURN, C.R.

Dep. of Geography and Environmental Studies, Carleton Univ., Ottawa, Canada

Description :
An isolated, eroding pingo at the southern end of Parry Peninsula, N.W.T., Canada was first photographed in about 1910. Since 1910, the pingo crater pond has drained, the north side of the pingo has become well vegetated, the serrated crest has been smoothed, and the lake bottom has become colonised by willows and other vegetation. The erosion of the pingo has probably been dominated by the strong southerly katabatic winds in the area. A secondary cause of erosion has been the numerous excavations by ground squirrels and foxes on the slopes of the pingo. It is unusual to detect change of collapsed pingos near the western Arctic coast of Canada unless ground ice is exposed in the core or on the sides of the pingo. The increases since 1996 in height and cover of willows are the first record of such change from western Arctic Canada.

Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Permafrost and periglacial processes, issn : 1045-6740, 2011, vol. 22, n°. 3, p. 266-272, nombre de pages : 7, Références bibliographiques : 27 ref.

Date :
2011

Editeur :
Pays édition : Royaume-Uni, Chichester, Wiley

Langue :
Anglais