Remote Sensing of Water Dynamics in Permafrost Regions
A special issue of Remote Sensing (ISSN 2072-4292). This special issue belongs to the section "Remote Sensing in Geology, Geomorphology and Hydrology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 29 December 2025 | Viewed by 108
Special Issue Editors
Interests: permafrost degradation; thermokarst processes; permafrost hydrology
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Permafrost is highly sensitive to climate change, with thaw-induced shifts in water dynamics profoundly affecting hydrology, ecosystems, and infrastructure stability. Processes such as thermokarst formation, wetland drying, and active layer deepening alter surface and subsurface water regimes. Remote sensing has become an essential tool for monitoring these changes across spatially vast and logistically challenging permafrost landscapes. With advances in satellite and UAV platforms, thermal, radar, and optical sensors now provide critical insights into freeze–thaw cycles, soil moisture, and hydrological connectivity. Understanding these dynamics is key to predicting environmental responses and supporting sustainable development in cold-region environments.
This Special Issue aims to advance the scientific understanding of water dynamics in permafrost regions by promoting innovative applications of remote sensing technologies. It seeks to highlight methodological developments, multi-sensor data integration, and new insights into hydrological processes such as surface water change, soil moisture variability, freeze–thaw transitions, and landscape–hydrology interactions. This topic aligns closely with the scope of Remote Sensing by focusing on the use of Earth observation tools to monitor and model dynamic geophysical and hydrological phenomena. Contributions will strengthen the journal’s mission to support cutting-edge research in remote sensing for environmental monitoring, geoscience, and climate-related change detection. Potential topics for this Special Issue include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Monitoring of thermokarst lakes, ponds, wetlands, and river dynamics;
- Remote sensing of soil moisture, active layer thickness, and ground ice melt;
- Freeze–thaw cycle detection and seasonal snow cover mapping;
- Detection and monitoring of thaw slumps, ice-rich permafrost degradation, and surface subsidence;
- Hydrological connectivity and watershed-scale runoff dynamics in permafrost regions;
- Impacts of permafrost thaw on carbon and water fluxes using remote sensing.
Dr. Zeyong Gao
Dr. Lingxiao Wang
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- permafrost degradation
- thermokarst processes
- ground-ice melting
- active layer dynamics
- climate change impacts
- eco-hydrological effects
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