Permafrost describes earth that's been frozen for two or more consecutive years. This frozen soil is filled with hundreds of thousands of dormant microbial species. The world is still recovering from a deadly coronavirus pandemic that killed almost seven million people — including around 230,000 in the UK. But scientists have issued a chilling warning that an even more lethal 'Factor X' virus could be lurking in Earth's permafrost, just waiting to be unleashed.
Worse still, they say climate change has made it more likely that a host of deadly diseases which have laid dormant for hundreds of thousands of years could be freed as the planet continues to warm. That's because the frozen soil – or permafrost – is teaming with a huge number of dormant microbial species, many of which scientists know little or nothing about. It could also trigger the release of extinct diseases such as smallpox or pathogens that once wreaked havoc among our ancestors, experts warn