The thermal stability of permafrost, a foundation for engineering infrastructure in cold regions, is increasingly threatened by the dual stressors of climate change and anthropogenic disturbance. This study investigates the dynamics of the crushed rock revetted embankment at the Kunlun Mountain Section of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, systematically investigating the coupled impacts of climate warming and engineering activities on permafrost thermal stability using borehole temperature monitoring data (2008-2024) and climatic parameter analysis. Results show that under climate-driven effects, the study area experienced an air temperature increase of 0.2 degrees C per decade over the 2015-2024. Concurrently, the mean annual air thawing degree-days (TDD) rose by 13.8 degrees C center dot d/a, leading to active-layer thickening at a rate of 3.8 cm center dot a- 1at natural ground sites. From 2008 to 2024, the active layer had thickened by 0.7-0.8 m. At the embankment toe (BH 5), the active-layer thickening rate (3.3 cm center dot a- 1) was 25 % lower than that at the natural ground borehole (3.8 cm center dot a- 1); correspondingly, the underlying permafrost temperature increase rate at the toe (0.3 degrees C per decade) was lower than that at the natural borehole (0.5-0.6 degrees C per decade). Permafrost warming rates decreased with depth. Shallow layers (above -2 m) were significantly influenced by climate, with warming rates of 0.3-0.6 degrees C per decade. In contrast, deep layers (below -10 m) showed warming rates converging with the background atmospheric temperature trend (0.2 degrees C per decade). Thermal regime disturbance was most pronounced at horizontal distances of 3.0-5.0 m from the embankment. Nevertheless, the crushed-rock revetment maintained a permafrost table 0.6 m shallower than that of natural ground, confirming its thermal diode effect (facilitating convective cooling in winter), which partially offset climate warming impacts. This study provides critical empirical data and validates the cooling mechanism of crushed-rock revetment, which is essential for predicting the long-term thermal stability and informing adaptive maintenance strategies for railway infrastructure in warming permafrost regions.

On Spitsbergen, Svalbard, the Nordenski & ouml;ld Land Permafrost Observatory provides ground temperature time series from 2008 to the present in 16 boreholes located in a variety of periglacial landforms. This study presents trends in permafrost temperatures and active layer thickness, compares these trends to observed climatic changes, and differentiates the climate sensitivity of the studied periglacial landforms. Ground temperature variability in these landforms is driven by Svalbard's air temperature gradients due to elevation and from the warmer west coast to the colder interior, in addition to snow cover and landform dynamics. During the study period, increases in permafrost temperatures and active layer thickness, closely tied to rapid climate warming on Svalbard, were observed at nearly all sites. The observed rates of active layer thickness increase, ranging from 0.5 to 10.7 cm/year, are on the high end of observed values across the circum-Arctic. Decadal increase in temperature at 20 m depth reaches 0.9 degrees C; the Canadian High Arctic and the Beaufort-Chukchi region are the only Arctic areas with permafrost warming of comparable magnitude. The landforms that are entirely or predominately composed of bedrock or a blocky substrate are the most thermally sensitive to climate change.