Ground Deformation in Yakutsk Due to Permafrost Degradation Seen from Sentinel-1

In permafrost regions, ground surface deformations induced by freezing and thawing threaten the integrity of the built environment. Mapping the surface displacement of the ground at a high spatial resolution is of practical importance for the construction and planning sectors. In central Yakutia (the Sakha Republic), the long-term trend displays a consistent mean annual air temperature (MAAT) increase from -9.6 ‰ to -6.7 ‰, with pronounced temperature anomalies in the last decade. We processed Sentinel-1 Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) data from 2017 to 2021, acquired over the area of Yakutsk city. We performed phase optimization using adaptive coherence estimation to reduce the impact of vegetation. We then used StaMPS technology to generate surface deformation time series, allowing us to analyze the spatiotemporal distribution of seasonal deformation during freezing and thawing. The research findings indicate the boreal forest region in central Yakutia displays InSAR displacement signal in association with surface uplift caused by freezing of the active layer while urban area shows resilience against the melting permafrost.