Remote Sensing-Based Statistical Approach for Defining Drained Lake Basins in a Continuous Permafrost Region, North Slope of Alaska

Helena Bergstedt,Rodrigo C Rangel,Guido Grosse,Noriaki Ohara,Amy L Breen,Louise Farquharson,Ingmar Nitze,Kenneth Hinkel,Benjamin M Jones,Mikhail Kanevskiy,Benjamin V Gaglioti,Andrew D Parsekian

doi:10.3390/rs13132539

Abstract

Lake formation and drainage are pervasive phenomena in permafrost regions. Drained lake basins (DLBs) are often the most common landforms in lowland permafrost regions in the Arctic (50% to 75% of the landscape). However, detailed assessments of DLB distribution and abundance are limited. In this study, we present a novel and scalable remote sensing-based approach to identifying DLBs in lowland permafrost regions, using the North Slope of Alaska as a case study. We validated this first North Slope-wide DLB data product against several previously published sub-regional scale datasets and manually classified points. The study area covered >71,000 km2, including a >39,000 km2 area not previously covered in existing DLB datasets. Our approach used Landsat-8 multispectral imagery and ArcticDEM data to derive a pixel-by-pixel statistical assessment of likelihood of DLB occurrence in sub-regions with different permafrost and periglacial landscape conditions, as well as to quantify aerial coverage of DLBs on the North Slope of Alaska. The results were consistent with previously published regional DLB datasets (up to 87% agreement) and showed high agreement with manually classified random points (64.4–95.5% for DLB and 83.2–95.4% for non-DLB areas). Validation of the remote sensing-based statistical approach on the North Slope of Alaska indicated that it may be possible to extend this methodology to conduct a comprehensive assessment of DLBs in pan-Arctic lowland permafrost regions. Better resolution of the spatial distribution of DLBs in lowland permafrost regions is important for quantitative studies on landscape diversity, wildlife habitat, permafrost, hydrology, geotechnical conditions, and high-latitude carbon cycling.

Highlights

The basis of the Drained lake basins (DLBs) likelihood index presented in this study was formed by the statistical analysis of the Tasseled Cap transformation (TCT) derived from the cloud-free Landsat-8 mosaic
By quantifying the proportion of lakes and DLBs in particular areas and across the entirety of the North Slope, for the first time, this study provides critical information as to the rate of past landscape changes and a lens on the variability in landscape dynamics operating over the course of millennia
The area included in this study covers >71,000 km2, including a >39,000 km2 area not previously covered in existing DLB datasets

Summary

Introduction

Permafrost-region lakes and drained lake basins (DLBs) are dominant landforms in Arctic lowland regions and play an important role in the geomorphological and ecological creativecommons.org/licenses/by/ 4.0/). To 75% of the landscape [11], and that DLB coverage is typically two to three times higher than the areal coverage of extant lakes [12,13]. The presence of both lakes and DLBs and their relative distribution in the landscape have been the subject of numerous studies, which have focused on their role in permafrost-region carbon cycling, habitat provision, and human land use practices. Thermokarst lakes are important landscape features due to their significant role in permafrost carbon mobilization [14,15,16], their role as freshwater sources that are critical for Arctic settlements and industry [17,18,19], and as an important habitat that supports resident and migratory wildlife [20,21]

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Conclusion