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NOVA | Arctic Sinkholes | A Ticking Time Bomb

In the Arctic, enormous releases of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, threaten the climate.

Colossal explosions shake a remote corner of the Siberian tundra, leaving behind massive craters. In Alaska, a huge lake erupts with bubbles of inflammable gas.


Scientists are discovering that these mystifying phenomena add up to a ticking time bomb, as long-frozen permafrost melts and releases vast amounts of methane, a potent greenhouse gas.


What are the implications of these dramatic developments in the Arctic?


Scientists and local communities alike are struggling to grasp the scale of the methane threat and what it means for our climate future.


00:00 | Introduction

02:22 | Giant Sinkhole in Siberia

05:54 | Evidence of Methane in Craters 

09:02 | Alaskan Lake Bubbling

14:47 | Effects of Permafrost Thaw on Climate 

17:26 | Native Alaskan Solutions to Permafrost

21:37 | Organic Matter Impacted by Permafrost

24:44 | Greenhouse Gasses Emitted from Permafrost Thaw

33:37 | Fossil Methane in Earth’s Crust

42:19 | Tipping Point: Arctic Regions are Sinking

47:47 | How Communities are Finding Solutions

50:15 | Conclusion

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