Annual and sub-seasonal dynamics of a rapidly eroding permafrost coastline along the Beaufort Sea in northern Alaska
Abstract Drew Point, an unlithified ice-rich permafrost coastline along the Alaskan Beaufort Sea, is among the most rapidly eroding Arctic coastlines, with an average erosion rate of 19 m/yr from 2007 to 2019. We use 16 high-resolution remote sensing datasets (satellite, airborne, and UAV imagery) t...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-06-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-04753-3 |
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| author | Melissa K. Ward Jones Benjamin M. Jones Ingmar Nitze Matthias Gessner Guido Grosse Annett Bartsch Diana Bull |
| author_facet | Melissa K. Ward Jones Benjamin M. Jones Ingmar Nitze Matthias Gessner Guido Grosse Annett Bartsch Diana Bull |
| author_sort | Melissa K. Ward Jones |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Drew Point, an unlithified ice-rich permafrost coastline along the Alaskan Beaufort Sea, is among the most rapidly eroding Arctic coastlines, with an average erosion rate of 19 m/yr from 2007 to 2019. We use 16 high-resolution remote sensing datasets (satellite, airborne, and UAV imagery) to analyze erosion mechanisms (thermal abrasion and denudation) in relation to environmental forcings along a 1.5 km stretch of coastline during the 2018 and 2019 open water seasons. In a striking contrast, 2019 exhibited the highest mean erosion rate (34.5 m) within the 2007–2019 record, while 2018 had the second lowest (11.2 m). Block failure contributed to sub-seasonal erosion rates 6 to 21 times higher than thermal denudation, with staggered block fall timing, lag responses post-storm, and non-storm block collapse influencing overall erosion magnitude and timing. To quantify wind effects, we developed wind sums, a metric combining cumulative wind speed and directional data that can be used as a proxy for integrated storm intensity capable of incorporating lagged responses that correlated strongly with erosion at sub-seasonal and annual scales. Our findings emphasize the dominant role of wind during periods of open water and air temperature during the thaw season in driving permafrost coastline erosion dynamics, while highlighting the importance of spatiotemporally high-resolution datasets for understanding Arctic coastal change dynamics. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e9c6f5e917604e1c86ea40d9668b92d4 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
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| spelling | doaj-art-e9c6f5e917604e1c86ea40d9668b92d42025-08-20T03:10:36ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-06-0115111610.1038/s41598-025-04753-3Annual and sub-seasonal dynamics of a rapidly eroding permafrost coastline along the Beaufort Sea in northern AlaskaMelissa K. Ward Jones0Benjamin M. Jones1Ingmar Nitze2Matthias Gessner3Guido Grosse4Annett Bartsch5Diana Bull6Institute of Northern Engineering, University of Alaska FairbanksInstitute of Northern Engineering, University of Alaska FairbanksAlfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine ResearchDeutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V. (DLR)Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Researchb.geos GmbHSandia National LaboratoriesAbstract Drew Point, an unlithified ice-rich permafrost coastline along the Alaskan Beaufort Sea, is among the most rapidly eroding Arctic coastlines, with an average erosion rate of 19 m/yr from 2007 to 2019. We use 16 high-resolution remote sensing datasets (satellite, airborne, and UAV imagery) to analyze erosion mechanisms (thermal abrasion and denudation) in relation to environmental forcings along a 1.5 km stretch of coastline during the 2018 and 2019 open water seasons. In a striking contrast, 2019 exhibited the highest mean erosion rate (34.5 m) within the 2007–2019 record, while 2018 had the second lowest (11.2 m). Block failure contributed to sub-seasonal erosion rates 6 to 21 times higher than thermal denudation, with staggered block fall timing, lag responses post-storm, and non-storm block collapse influencing overall erosion magnitude and timing. To quantify wind effects, we developed wind sums, a metric combining cumulative wind speed and directional data that can be used as a proxy for integrated storm intensity capable of incorporating lagged responses that correlated strongly with erosion at sub-seasonal and annual scales. Our findings emphasize the dominant role of wind during periods of open water and air temperature during the thaw season in driving permafrost coastline erosion dynamics, while highlighting the importance of spatiotemporally high-resolution datasets for understanding Arctic coastal change dynamics.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-04753-3Drew PointAlaska Beaufort Sea CoastCoastal ErosionThermal abrasionThermal denudationBlock failure |
| spellingShingle | Melissa K. Ward Jones Benjamin M. Jones Ingmar Nitze Matthias Gessner Guido Grosse Annett Bartsch Diana Bull Annual and sub-seasonal dynamics of a rapidly eroding permafrost coastline along the Beaufort Sea in northern Alaska Scientific Reports Drew Point Alaska Beaufort Sea Coast Coastal Erosion Thermal abrasion Thermal denudation Block failure |
| title | Annual and sub-seasonal dynamics of a rapidly eroding permafrost coastline along the Beaufort Sea in northern Alaska |
| title_full | Annual and sub-seasonal dynamics of a rapidly eroding permafrost coastline along the Beaufort Sea in northern Alaska |
| title_fullStr | Annual and sub-seasonal dynamics of a rapidly eroding permafrost coastline along the Beaufort Sea in northern Alaska |
| title_full_unstemmed | Annual and sub-seasonal dynamics of a rapidly eroding permafrost coastline along the Beaufort Sea in northern Alaska |
| title_short | Annual and sub-seasonal dynamics of a rapidly eroding permafrost coastline along the Beaufort Sea in northern Alaska |
| title_sort | annual and sub seasonal dynamics of a rapidly eroding permafrost coastline along the beaufort sea in northern alaska |
| topic | Drew Point Alaska Beaufort Sea Coast Coastal Erosion Thermal abrasion Thermal denudation Block failure |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-04753-3 |
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