Advances in permafrost and periglacial research in Antarctica: A review

Recently the research on permafrost, periglacial morphology and processes had a great stimulus especially from the International Polar Year. Permafrost areas of continental Antarctica with its extreme dry and cold environment can be considered an analog of extraterrestrial landscapes like those on Mars, but also preserve much paleoclimatic information of this crucial part of the global climatic system. On the other hand, maritime Antarctica is one of the areas of the world currently affected by the greatest air warming and provides a unique opportunity to understand the impacts of climate change on permafrost and its related ecosystems. Despite the significant recent progress, some gaps on permafrost distribution still remain as the network for permafrost and active layer monitoring needs further enlargement and better standardization. Ground ice, its age and stability over time need further investigation, as well as the role of living organisms on the weathering processes within the cryotic rocks, the landscape evolution of continental Antartica could be improved providing potential implications also for a better understanding and modeling of life and landscape evolution of other planets.