The Pazyryk world was porous and connected, not isolated and self-sufficient.

Why The Permafrost Matters More Than Ever

The preservation of the Ice Maiden and the other Pazyryk mummies depends on permafrost — the permanently frozen ground that covers roughly a quarter of the Earth’s land surface.

And permafrost is thawing.

Global temperature increases driven by human carbon emissions are causing permafrost to thaw across the Arctic and sub-Arctic.

In Siberia — where the permafrost is among the deepest and oldest on Earth — surface layers that have been frozen for thousands of years are now thawing for the first time.

In some areas, the thaw is releasing greenhouse gases (methane and carbon dioxide) from organic material that has been frozen and preserved, potentially accelerating the warming that caused the thaw in the first place.