Stone Circles: Form and Soil Kinematics

Summary

Distinguished surface patterns are diverse and across soils within alpine and polar
regions, particularly where the ground temperature goes back and forth between about 0◦C.
These are some of the most highly visible, abiotic self-organizations within nature. The article
considers the importance of frost-centered physical processes which generate these patterns
sporadically. Further it provides data of surface displacement and subsurface soil rotational
movement across two decades in advanced circles of soil which are outlined by gravel ridges.
The sorted circles are renowned for their extraordinary geometric regularity, their processes can
be monitored often because they are in constant formation and evolving, and as they are near the
ground surface it facilitates ‘comprehensive characterization’. Further, a highly accurate
numerical model of this sorted circle’s development can be used in conjunction with field
observations, and there is great potential for modeling and synergetic field studies. To have
greater understanding of patterned ground and varying periglacial formations, it necessitates
greater use of field studies. Additionally, scientists and engineers can do cross-fertilization which
can help explore the parallels between freezing within soils and similar occurrences that
chemical engineers experience through freezing perishable products within storage, or medical
scientists who study freezing organs or tissues. Permafrost research is evolving due to
understanding and incorporating interdependent chemical, physical and biological processes.
These processes in the active layer are what makes the Arctic lands vulnerable to climate change,
and changes within these polar regions can affect climate change on a global level. There is a
role of the Arctic which can help guide the world’s CO2 budget, that depends on ground water
conditions.

Reflection

The implications of this article is that it highlights a gap and need to understand more about how
the changes in climate, permafrost landscape and vegetation within the Arctic region can affect
the hydrology within that region. Also, this research is important for encouraging cross
fertilization, which can lead to more advanced methods and refined ways in which to study
freezing related phenomenon.