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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsYes. Long-term measurements show that permafrost deep below the surface has warmed across Alaska over the past four decades. The pace differs by region: NOAA reports faster warming in colder North Slope permafrost than in warmer Interior Alaska. In 2024, temperatures reached record highs at 9 of 20 long-term monitoring sites, though NOAA described the year as the second-warmest on record for Alaska overall.
What “deep underground” means in NOAA’s measurements
NOAA’s 2024 Arctic Report Card reports permafrost temperatures at depths of at least 15 metres. The measurements represented in its Alaska comparison are taken at 15 metres in Interior Alaska and 20 metres on the North Slope. At these depths, temperatures are less affected by seasonal swings than surface readings, making long-term changes a useful indicator of permafrost’s response to climate change. NOAA Arctic Report Card 2024: Arctic Terrestrial Carbon Cycling
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How quickly is Alaska’s deep permafrost warming?
For the four decades covered by the 2024 assessment, NOAA reports different average warming-rate ranges for the two regions. These are ranges across regional monitoring sites, not one uniform rate for the state.
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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →| Region | Measurement depth | Permafrost baseline | Reported warming rate over four decades |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Slope | 20 m | Colder permafrost | 0.3–0.7°C per decade (NOAA Arctic Report Card authors, 2024) |
| Interior Alaska | 15 m | Warmer permafrost | 0.02–0.3°C per decade (NOAA Arctic Report Card authors, 2024) |
NOAA attributes the faster North Slope warming partly to greater air-temperature increases at higher latitudes. In Interior Alaska, permafrost closer to 0°C warms more slowly in part because energy goes into melting ground ice—a process that consumes latent heat—instead of raising the soil temperature. The reported rates therefore reflect both regional climate conditions and differences in the ground’s thermal state.
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What did the 2024 records show?
Permafrost temperatures were the highest on record at 9 of Alaska’s 20 long-term monitoring sites in 2024. NOAA characterized 2024 as Alaska’s second-warmest permafrost year on record overall. The site count matters: a record at nine sites does not mean every monitored site, or every part of Alaska, set a record.
Does warming at depth mean the ground has thawed?
Not by itself. A higher temperature measured deep in permafrost documents warming, not an instantaneous measurement that the ground at that depth has thawed. NOAA also reports a deepening seasonally thawed layer—the layer near the surface that thaws during warmer months and refreezes in winter—alongside the longer-term deep-temperature trends. These describe related but distinct changes.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why permafrost warming matters beyond temperature
Stored carbon and greenhouse gases
When previously frozen soil thaws, microbes can decompose organic material that had been frozen and release carbon dioxide and methane. The amount and balance of emissions can vary among sites; the findings do not establish that every location has the same carbon response. The connection between deep warming, a deeper seasonally thawed layer and carbon release is part of the concern about how permafrost change may affect the climate. NOAA Arctic Report Card 2024: Arctic Terrestrial Carbon Cycling
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Orange-discolored watersheds
A separate NOAA finding in the 2025 Arctic Report Card describes orange discoloration in rivers and streams in more than 200 Arctic Alaska watersheds, associated with elements released as permafrost thaws. The report notes potential consequences for water quality and aquatic habitat. This is evidence of a broader thaw-related impact, not a measurement of the deep-temperature trend at a particular borehole. NOAA Arctic Report Card 2025
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How to read the findings
- The trend is long-term: deep measurements are less sensitive to seasonal fluctuations than surface readings.
- The rate varies by region: North Slope and Interior Alaska have different reported ranges and measurement depths.
- Warming and thaw are related, not interchangeable: temperature records show warming; seasonal thaw and its effects require separate evidence.
- Impacts are not identical everywhere: the carbon response and local water-quality effects can differ across landscapes.
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