Earth’s Cryosphere, 2022, Vol. XXV, No. 5, p. 11-18

SOIL TEMPERATURE IN THE CONTEMPORARY NATURAL-CLIMATIC SITUATION OF THE STEPPE BAIKAL REGION (ON THE EXAMPLE OF OLKHON ISLAND)

A.A. Svetlakov¹, E.A. Kozyreva¹, D.O. Sergeev²

¹ Institute of the Earth’s Crust, SB RAS, Lermontov str. 128, Irkutsk, 664033, Russia; svetlakov@crust.irk.ru, kozireva@crust.irk.ru
² Sergeev Institute of Environmental Geoscience, RAS, Ulansky per. 13, bld. 2, Moscow, 101000, Russia; sergueevdo@mail.ru

The paper analyzes the current temperature state of frozen and thaw soils in the Baikal region (Olkhon Island). It is shown that the current trend in soil temperature is directly related to climate change in and to the increase in the atmospheric air temperature. Permafrost within Olkhon Island is significantly transformed: the processes in soils are aimed at the degradation of frozen formations.

Permafrost, temperature regime, seasonally thawed and seasonally frozen layer