Researchers have warned the world of the next “Zombie Viruses” that could be unleashed if the Arctic permafrost starts to melt. This could be one of the most deadly pandemics ever faced by humankind. The reason behind this prediction is the ongoing major climate change in the world. The ongoing discussions on climate change highlight the alarming issue of glacier melting. It’s crucial to recognise that the melting glaciers pose not only a geographical threat but a significant biological threat to the world.
Permafrost is the soil or underwater sediment that has been frozen for long periods. Some of the oldest permafrost has been frozen for about 7,00,000 years. It covers around one-fifth of the world’s northern hemisphere and it is cold, dark, and oxygen-free.
Zombie Viruses – What are they?
These ancient viruses or “zombie viruses” also known as Methuselah viruses after the old biblical character, have been found by researchers who are worried about a new global crisis.
Scientists are advocating for the establishment of an Arctic monitoring network which can address the risk of diseases from the distant past resurfacing. This network aims to detect early cases of diseases caused by ancient microorganisms, offering prompt quarantine assistance and expert medical treatment to prevent infected individuals from leaving the region.
It is recently estimated that an outbreak could start in the far north and then travel south. There are viruses there that could infect humans and trigger a new disease outbreak.
Zombie Viruses – Past encounters
In 2014, Michel Claverie and a team of scientists isolated live viruses found in Siberia, demonstrating their ability to infect single-cell organisms. While these particular viruses only pose a threat to amoeba and not humans, they highlight the potential for other dangerous viruses hidden in permafrost.
Claverie revealed genomic traces of poxviruses and herpesviruses hidden in the depths of the permafrost, known to infect humans, raising concerns about the possibility of unearthed pathogens with the potential to affect global health.
The world’s permafrost is changing rapidly. The upper layers of the planet’s main reserves – in Canada, Siberia and Alaska – are melting as climate change affects the Arctic to a great extent. According to meteorologists, the region is heating up several times faster than the average rate of increase in global warming.
However, it is not melting permafrost directly that poses the most immediate risk, added Claverie. “The danger mainly comes from another global warming impact: the disappearance of Arctic sea ice. This increases shipping, traffic and industrial development in Siberia. Huge mining operations are being planned, and are going to drive vast holes into the deep permafrost to extract oil and ores.
According to Claverie, “Those operations will release vast amounts of pathogens that still thrive there. Miners will walk in and breathe the zombie viruses. The effects could be calamitous.”
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