The free Lost Lakes map tracks changes in roughly 4 million Arctic lakes nearly in real time, with records dating to 2016. Researchers say lake formation, shrinkage and disappearance can offer clues to permafrost thaw, which is difficult to measure directly below ground.
Thaw can make ground sink and collect water, forming ponds and lakes; elsewhere, it can open channels that drain existing lakes. Permafrost contains organic material, and some stored carbon can escape into the atmosphere as it thaws, potentially adding to warming, researcher Ingmar Nitze said.
Nitze and University of Alaska Fairbanks researcher Anna Liljedahl reported that close to 200 lakes in northwestern Alaska shrank in summer 2018 after a very warm winter. They also wrote that areas with more ice-rich permafrost may be less suitable for building, while places with less ground ice could be safer.
