%0 Research articles
%T Distribution range, morphological types and state of palsa mires in Finland in the 2010s
%A Ruuhijärvi, Rauno
%A Salminen, Pekka
%A Tuominen, Seppo
%D 2022
%J Suo - Mires and peat
%V 73
%N 1
%U http://suo.fi/article/10741
%X <p>The article examines the distribution range of palsa mires as well as the morphological types and state of palsas in Finland on the basis of the MapSite service maintained by the National Land Survey of Finland (NLS) as well as colour aerial photography or Microsoft Bing images covering nearly all of the palsa mires of Fjeld Lapland. Aerial photographs were used to determine the surface areas of palsa mire complexes and, separately, of palsa groups, the morphological types of palsas, and the degree of thawing on the basis of the state of the palsas on a scale of 1–5. The average elevation above sea level of the mires was obtained from basic maps. The work revealed for the first time the extensive occurrence of palsa plateaus in Finland and the rapid thawing of palsa mounds in recent decades.</p>