Scientists have revived a 48,000-year-old ‘zombie virus, dubbed as Pandoravirus yedoma,’ found in the permafrost region of Siberia, Russia.
Key points
- The 13 new viruses were identified by scientists who looked at samples of permafrost collected from the Russian province.
- The zombie virus had buried under frozen lake in Russia, and it was unearthed by scientists from the French National Centre for Scientific Researchers.
- According to the researchers, it is likely that ancient permafrost will release these unknown viruses after it thaws due to increasing global warming.
- People are expected to populate these areas after they become habitable which is when there may be a threat of new viruses infecting life forms.
- Scientists have long warned that the thawing of permafrost due to atmospheric warming will worsen climate change by freeing previously trapped greenhouse gases like methane. But its effect on dormant pathogens is less well understood.
About Permafrost
- Permafrost is any ground that remains completely frozen—32°F (0°C) or colder—for at least two years straight.
- These permanently frozen grounds are most common in regions with high mountains and in Earth’s higher latitudes—near the North and South Poles.
- Permafrost is made of a combination of soil, rocks and sand that are held together by ice.
- A layer of soil on top of permafrost does not stay frozen all year. This layer, called the active layer, thaws during the warm summer months and freezes again in the fall.
Thawing permafrost can have following dramatic impacts:
- Many northern villages are built on permafrost. When permafrost is frozen, it’s harder than concrete. However, thawing permafrost can destroy houses, roads and other infrastructure.
- When permafrost is frozen, plant material in the soil can’t decompose, or rot away. As permafrost thaws, microbes begin decomposing this material. This process releases greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane to the atmosphere.
- When permafrost thaws, so do ancient bacteria and viruses in the ice and soil. These newly-unfrozen microbes could make humans and animals very sick.
