Limited remineralization of Arctic permafrost-derived organic carbon in nearshore marine sediments

Nature Geoscience, Published online: 31 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41561-026-02060-8 Only 10% of organic carbon from thawing Pleistocene permafrost in the Arctic that is buried in marine sediments ends up re-entering the active carbon cycle, according to a carbon isotope analysis of sediments from off Qikiqtaruk (Herschel Island) in Canada.