The Permafrost Laboratory deals with scientific questions related to the circumpolar permafrost dynamics and feedbacks between permafrost and global change. At the Permafrost Laboratory, data related to the thermal and structural state of circumpolar permafrost is collected and analyzed. The focus of our research is the development of methods to physically and mathematically model permafrost interactions with the climate system (permafrost modeling), the study of naturally and human induced disturbances of permafrost (permafrost process studies), the detection of changes in permafrost temperature, thickness, and distribution over time (permafrost monitoring), and the prediction of impacts of permafrost changes on the natural environment (e.g. ecosystems, hydrology, carbon cycle) as well as human-related concerns (e.g. infrastructure). We are interested in all aspects of how permafrost is affected by global change with respect to climate as well as natural and human induced disturbances. The Permafrost Lab was established in the 1960s by Professor Thomas E. Osterkamp at the Geophysical Institute of the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
