Russian scientists discovered gigantic surfaces where the Arctic Ocean methane gas reaches the surfaces and goes into the atmosphere. The gas, 20 times more harmful than carbon dioxide, can speed up the Earth’s climatic change.
“A while ago we have discovered torch type structures, but they were smaller than a few dozens meters. It is for the first time when we discovered continue leaks, strong and impressive. We are talking about areas with more than 1,000 meters in diameter” Igor Smiletov, Russian scientist said.
Smiletov cataloged the discovery as shocking and warned that thousands of such gigantic leaks might be present between the Russian coast and the East Siberia continental platform.
“In a very reduced area, of more than 10,000 square meters, we counted more than 100 wells, where gas was present in bubbles and reached the atmosphere directly. Some areas had diameters bigger than 1000 meters, and emissions reached the atmosphere. The methane gas concentration was 100 times above the normal values”
Scientists estimate that hundreds of millions of tons of methane gas reserves are blocked below Arctic Ocean. One of the biggest worries is that high temperatures can cause the methane gas to be released into the atmosphere.
