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Chinese scientists discover thickening ground ice in parts of warming Tibet
Research counters expectations but the region remains extremely vulnerable to climate change, study warns
Dannie Pengin Beijing
Published: 10:00am, 4 Nov 2026Updated: 12:50pm, 4 Nov 2026
The Tibetan Plateau, home to the world’s largest expanse of alpine permafrost, is warming at about twice the global average but, counter-intuitively,researchers have found that ice in parts of the Tibet autonomous region is actually thickening.
A team from Peking University found that shallow ground ice has unexpectedly increased over the past 20 years, affecting more than a third of the plateau’s permafrost, a phenomenon driven largely by natural climate factors.
The authors noted that the impact of this ice gain on the stability of the underlying permafrost and the broader environment was unclear.
