Arctic Melt Releasing Ancient Methane

Many of the sites were bubbling methane that has been stored for millennia

BBC News - by Richard Black - May 20, 2012

Scientists have identified thousands of sites in the Arctic where methane that has been stored for many millennia is bubbling into the atmosphere.

The methane has been trapped by ice, but is able to escape as the ice melts.

Writing in the journal Nature Geoscience, the researchers say this ancient gas could have a significant impact on climate change.

Methane is the second most important greenhouse gas after CO2 and levels are rising after a few years of stability.

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Nature Geoscience - Geologic methane seeps along boundaries of Arctic permafrost thaw and melting glaciers

http://www.nature.com/ngeo/journal/vaop/ncurrent/full/ngeo1480.html