How much methane is trapped in tundras and clathrates?

If the temperature or pressure changes, the ice that imprisons the methane will break apart, and the methane will escape. We're not sure how much methane is trapped in methyl clathrates, or how much is in danger of escaping. The other major source of methane in the Arctic is the organic matter frozen in permafrost. read more

There are an estimated 1.4 trillion tons of methane trapped in permafrost and another 0.5 to 1.5 trillion tons bound in frozen methane clathrates under water. That’s an amount more than two times all the carbon currently in Earth’s atmosphere. read more

Large quantities of methane are stored in the Arctic in natural gas deposits, permafrost, and as undersea clathrates. Permafrost and clathrates degrade on warming, thus large releases of methane from these sources may arise as a result of global warming. read more

Potentially even more troubling is the possibility that seabed methane stores locked in ice, known as clathrates, may also be starting to destabilize. Worldwide, there is estimated to be between 1,600 and 2,000 gigatons of carbon locked in clathrates (or methane hydrates) on the bottom of the ocean. read more