资源环境科技发展态势分析平台

Climate change is causing rapid changes of Arctic ecosystems. Yet, data needed to unravel complex subsurface processes are very rare. Using geophysical and in‐situ sensing, this study closes an observational gap associated with thermohydrological dynamics in discontinuous permafrost systems. It highlights the impact of vegetation and snow thickness distribution on subsurface thermohydrological properties and processes. Large snow accumulation near tall shrubs insulates the ground and allows for rapid and downward heat flow. Thinner snowpack above graminoid results in surficial freezing and prevents water from infiltrating into the subsurface. Analyzing short term disturbances, we found that lateral flow could be a driving factor in talik formation. Inter‐annual measurements show that deep permafrost temperatures increased by about 0.2°C over two years. The results, which suggest that snow‐vegetation‐subsurface processes are tightly coupled, will be useful for improving predictions of Arctic feedback to climate change, including how subsurface thermohydrology influences CO₂ and CH₄ fluxes.