Permafrost degradation in the ice-wedge tundra terrace of Paulatuk Peninsula (Darnley Bay, Canada)

The warming of high latitudes climate is enhancing the degradation ground-ice and inducing important landscape changes across Arctic. This new Arctic state affects geomorphological dynamics, hydrology, ecosystems, poses challenges to stability infrastructure livelihoods communities. study focuses on hamlet Paulatuk within Inuvialuit Settlement Region Amundsen Gulf, south Darnley Bay, in northern Canada. In summer 2019, an ultra-high resolution aerial survey with a fixed-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) was conducted, generating 5 cm spatial orthomosaic Digital Surface Model (DSM). These, together field observations were used produce very-high map settlement surrounding coastal areas. Landscape analyzed using historical imagery 1975 1993, 2019 UAV Pléiades satellite scene from 2020. area tundra terrace made up sandy fluvioglacial sediments affected by dense network ice-wedge polygons, mostly high-centered, but also low-centered, showing signs permafrost degradation. Air ground temperatures have increased respectively 0.8 1.9 °C over last two decades at Paulatuk, inter-polygon ponds surface 23,000 m2 since due thawing. airstrip enhanced thaw pond formation its margins, especially after 1993. DSM reveals depression airstrip, which can be potentially flooded proximity waters.