Please note!
This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
Could melting permafrost potentially re-expose humans to previously frozen pathogens?
Friday, August 21, 2020
By Samuel Henning
Copy link
Copy featured image
YES
Potentially dangerous viruses and bacteria can be released when permafrost melts. A 2014 study confirmed that microorganisms preserved in permafrost can remain infectious even after being frozen for tens of thousands of years. A major concern is a potential for melted permafrost to expose burial sites containing disease victims whose corpses may contain well-preserved, potentially dangerous pathogens. Victims of smallpox, the Spanish flu, and other infectious diseases are buried in gravesites in the permafrost.
In 2016, an outbreak of anthrax sickened dozens of people in Siberia--the deadly outbreak is believed to have been caused by melting permafrost exposing a reindeer corpse which had been buried for decades.
This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
FACT BRIEF BY
