Schweizerischer Nationalfonds / Fonds national suisse
Thawing permafrost in the Alps
Bern (ots) - If the bedrock in the Alps no longer remains permanently frozen, rockfalls may occur more frequently. By measuring electrical resistivity in the ground, researchers can now better understand why this happens. The disappearance of the glaciers is visible to us all. What is happening to the alpine bedrock is less obvious. The permafrost is thawing there. And that has consequences: when the underground ice melts, it can destabilise mountain slopes, change the landscape and endanger people and their infrastructure. This is why Swiss researchers have been monitoring the state of ...