Ecoflix Education: Science
Climate Emergency: Feedback Loops 3 - Permafrost
Season 5, Episode 3
•
11m
Permafrost, an icy expanse of frozen ground covering one-quarter of the Northern Hemisphere, is thawing. As it does, microscopic animals are waking up and feeding on the previously frozen carbon stored in plant and animal remains, releasing heat-trapping gases as a byproduct. These gases warm the atmosphere further, melting more permafrost in a dangerous feedback loop. With permafrost containing twice as much carbon as the atmosphere, its thaw could release 150 billion tons of carbon by the end of the century. Narrated by Richard Gere
Up Next in Science: Ages 14-16
-
Climate Emergency: Feedback Loops 4 -...
Global warming is altering Earth's weather patterns dramatically. A warmer atmosphere absorbs more water vapor, which in turn traps more heat and warms the planet further in an accelerating feedback loop. Climate change is also disrupting the jet stream, triggering a feedback loop that brings war...
-
Climate Emergency: Feedback Loops 5 A...
The reflectivity of snow and ice at the poles, known as the albedo effect, is one of Earth's most important cooling mechanisms. But global warming has reduced this reflectivity drastically, setting off a dangerous warming loop: as more Arctic ice and snow melt, the albedo effect decreases, warmin...
-
Eco TrailBlazers - James Levelle
James Levelle is a committed environmentalist with a passion for adventure - his documentary 'Race for the Future' is an 11,000km journey from southern England to the capital of Chile made without the use of fossil fuel powered transport
