We present a review of the changing state of European permafrost within a spatial zone that includes the continuous high latitude arctic permafrost of Svalbard and the discontinuous high altitude mountain permafrost of Iceland, Fennoscandia and the Alps. The paper focuses on methodological developments and data collection over the last decade or so, including research associated with the continent-scale network of instrumented permafrost boreholes established between 1998 and 2001 under the European Union PACE project. Data indicate recent warming trends, with greatest warming at higher latitudes. Equally important are the impacts of shorter-term extreme climatic events, most immediately reflected in changes in active layer thickness. A large number of complex variables, including altitude, topography, insolation and snow distribution, determine permafrost temperatures. The development of regionally calibrated empiricalstatistical models, and physically based process-oriented models, is described, and it is shown that, though more complex and data dependent, process-oriented approaches are better suited to estimating transient effects of climate change in complex mountain topography. Mapping and characterisation of permafrost depth and distribution requires integrated multiple geophysical approaches and recent advances are discussed. We report on recent research into ground ice formation, including ice segregation within bedrock and vein ice formation within ice wedge systems. The potential impacts of climate change on rock weathering, permafrost creep, landslides, rock falls, debris flows and slow mass movements are also discussed. Recent engineering responses to the potentially damaging effects of climate warming are outlined, and risk assessment strategies to minimise geological hazards are described. We conclude that forecasting changes in hazard occurrence, magnitude and frequency is likely to depend on process-based modelling, demanding improved understanding of geomorphological process-response systems and their impacts on human activity. We present a review of the changing state of European permafrost within a spatial zone that includes the continuous high latitude arctic permafrost of Svalbard and the discontinuous high altitude mountain permafrost of Iceland, Fennoscandia and the Alps. The paper focuses on methodological developments and data collection over the last decade or so, including research associated with the continent-scale network of instrumented permafrost boreholes established between 1998 and 2001 under the European Union PACE project. Data indicate recent warming trends, with greatest warming at higher latitudes. Equally important are the impacts of shorter-term extreme climatic events, most immediately reflected in changes in active layer thickness. A large number of complex variables, including altitude, topography, insolation and snow distribution, determine permafrost temperatures. The development of regionally calibrated empiricalstatistical models, and physically based ...

Recent findings on large nitrous oxide (N 2 O) emissions from permafrost peatlands have shown that tundra soils can support high N 2 O release, which is on the contrary to what was thought previously. However, field data on this topic have been very limited, and the spatial and temporal extent of the phenomenon has not been known. To address this question, we studied N 2 O dynamics in two types of subarctic permafrost peatlands, a peat plateau in Russia and three palsa mires in Finland, including also adjacent upland soils. The peatlands studied have surfaces that are uplifted by frost (palsas and peat plateaus) and partly unvegetated as a result of wind erosion and frost action. Unvegetated peat surfaces with high N 2 O emissions were found from all the studied peatlands. Very high N 2 O emissions were measured from peat circles at the Russian site (1.40 AE 0.15 g N 2 O m À2 yr À1 ). Elevated, sparsely vegetated peat mounds at the same site had significantly lower N 2 O release. The N 2 O emissions from bare palsa surfaces in Northern Finland were highly variable but reached high rates, similar to those measured from the peat circles. All the vegetated soils studied had negligible N 2 O release. At the bare peat surfaces, the large N 2 O emissions were supported by the absence of plant N uptake, the low C : N ratio of the peat, the relatively high gross N mineralization rate and favourable moisture content, together increasing availability of mineral N for N 2 O production. We hypothesize that frost heave is crucial for high N 2 O emissions, since it lifts the peat above the water table, increasing oxygen availability and making it vulnerable to the the physical processes that may remove the vegetation cover. In the future, permafrost thawing may change the distribution of wet and dry surfaces in permafrost peatlands, which will affect N 2 O emissions.

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This review presents a synthesis of four decades of palsa studies based on field experiments and observations mainly in Fennoscandia, as well as laboratory measurements. Palsas are peat-covered mounds with a permanently frozen core; in Finnish Lapland, they range from 0.5 to 7 m in height and from 2 to 150 m in diameter. These small landforms are characteristic of the southern margin of the discontinuous permafrost zone. Palsa formation requires certain environmental conditions: long-lasting air temperature below 0°C, thin snow cover, and low summer precipitation. The development and persistence of their frozen core is sensitive to the physical properties of peat. The thermal conductivity of wet and frozen peat is high, and it decreases significantly as the peat dries and thaws. This affects the development of the active layer and makes its response to climate change complex. The insulating properties of dry peat during hot and dry summers moderate the thawing of the active layer on palsas. In contrast, humid and wet weather during the summer causes deep thawing and may destroy the frozen core of palsas. Ice layers in palsas have previously been interpreted as ice segregation features but because peat is not frost-susceptible, the ice layers are now reinterpreted as resulting from ice growth at the base of a frozen core that is effectively floating in a mire.

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