Arctic Research Glossary | U.S. Geological Survey

B

Boreal

Relating to or characteristic of the climatic zone south of the Arctic, especially the cold temperate region dominated by taiga and forests of birch.

C

Cryosphere

All regions on and beneath the surface of the Earth and ocean where water is in solid form, including sea ice, lake ice, river ice, snow cover, and glaciers.

E

Ecosystems

All the organisms within a designated area and the physical environment with which they interact.

Erosion

The process whereby materials of the Earth's crust are loosened, dissolved, or worn away and simultaneously moved from one place to another.

G

Gas hydrates

Gas hydrates are a naturally occurring, ice-like substance that forms when water and gas combine under high pressure and at moderate temperatures.

I

Ice dynamics

The movement within large bodies of ice.

Indigenous

Describes any group of people native to a specific region. In other words, it refers to people who lived there before colonists or settlers arrived, defined new borders, and began to occupy the land.

M

Methane

Methane (CH4) is a greenhouse gas that is colorless, odorless, and highly flammable.

P

Pelagic

Relating to the open sea. The pelagic zone can be thought of in terms of an imaginary cylinder or water column that goes from the surface of the sea almost to the bottom.

Permafrost

A thick subsurface layer of soil that remains frozen throughout the year, occurring chiefly in polar regions.

T

Thermokarst

An irregular land surface formed by the uneven melting of permafrost that produces irregular surfaces of small hills interspersed with hollows.