scholarly journals Internal structure and composition of a rock glacier in the Andes (upper Choapa valley, Chile) using borehole information and ground-penetrating radar

2013 ◽  
Vol 54 (64) ◽  
pp. 61-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sébastien Monnier ◽  
Christophe Kinnard

Abstract This study uses boreholes, ground temperature monitoring and ground-penetrating radar (GPR) in order to understand the internal structure and composition of a rock glacier in the upper Choapa valley, northern Chile. The rock glacier is a small valley-side feature, 200 m long and ranging between 3710 and 3780 ma.s.l. Two boreholes were drilled down to depths of 20 and 25 m, respectively, using the diamond drillhole technique. An ice-rock mixture was encountered in the boreholes, with heterogeneous ice content averaging 15-30%. Data from common-midpoint (CMP) and constant-offset (CO) GPR surveys acquired, respectively, near the boreholes and across the whole rock glacier were processed to highlight the internal stratigraphy and variations in the radar-wave velocity. The GPR profiles depict a rock glacier constituted of stacked and generally concordant layers, with a thickness ranging from 10 m in its upper part to ∼30m towards its terminus. The CMP analysis highlights radar-wave velocities of 0.13-0.16 m ns–1 in the first 20 m of the structure. Larger vertical and lateral velocity variations are highlighted from CO data, reflecting the heterogeneous composition of the rock glacier and the likely presence of unfrozen water in the structure. Given the average air temperature registered at the site (+0.5°C), the near-melting-point temperature registered in the boreholes over more than a year and the presence of locally high water content inferred from GPR data, it is thought that the permafrost in the rock glacier is currently degrading.

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-53
Author(s):  
Lei Fu ◽  
Lanbo Liu

Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) is a geophysical technique widely used in near-surface non-invasive detecting. It has the ability to obtaining a high-resolution internal structure of living trunks. Full wave inversion (FWI) has been widely used to reconstruct the dielectric constant and conductivity distribution for cross-well application. However, in some cases, the amplitude information is not reliable due to the antenna coupling, radiation pattern and other effects. We present a multiscale phase inversion (MPI) method, which largely matches the phase information by normalizing the magnitude spectrum; in addition, a natural multiscale approach by integrating the input data with different times is implemented to partly mitigate the local minimal problem. Two synthetic GPR datasets generated from a healthy oak tree trunk and from a decayed trunk are tested by MPI and FWI. Field GPR dataset consisting of 30 common shot GPR data are acquired on a standing white oak tree (Quercus alba); the MPI and FWI methods are used to reconstruct the dielectric constant distribution of the tree cross-section. Results indicate that MPI has more tolerance to the starting model, noise level and source wavelet. It can provide a more accurate image of the dielectric constant distribution compared to the conventional FWI.


2010 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 156-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcelo Barbio Rosa ◽  
Augusto Pereira Filho ◽  
Prakki Satyamurty

ABSTRACT Microphysical and thermodynamical features of two tropical systems, namely Hurricane Ivan and Typhoon Conson, and one sub-tropical, Catarina, have been analyzed based on space-born radar PR measurements available on the TRMM satellite. The procedure to classify the reflectivity profiles followed the Heymsfield et al (2000) and Steiner et al (1995) methodologies. The water and ice content have been calculated using a relationship obtained with data of the surface SPOL radar and PR in Rondonia State in Brazil. The diabatic heating rate due to latent heat release has been estimated using the methodology developed by Tao et al (1990). A more detailed analysis has been performed for Hurricane Catarina, the first of its kind in South Atlantic. High water content mean value has been found in Conson and Ivan at low levels and close to their centers. Results indicate that hurricane Catarina was shallower than the other two systems, with less water and the water was concentrated closer to its center. The mean ice content in Catarina was about 0.05 g kg-1 while in Conson it was 0.06 g kg-1 and in Ivan 0.08 g kg-1. Conson and Ivan had water content up to 0.3 g kg-1 above the 0ºC layer, while Catarina had less than 0.15 g kg-1. The latent heat released by Catarina showed to be very similar to the other two systems, except in the regions closer to the center.


2009 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nils Granlund ◽  
Angela Lundberg ◽  
James Feiccabrino ◽  
David Gustafsson

Ground penetrating radar operated from helicopters or snowmobiles is used to determine snow water equivalent (SWE) for annual snowpacks from radar wave two-way travel time. However, presence of liquid water in a snowpack is known to decrease the radar wave velocity, which for a typical snowpack with 5% (by volume) liquid water can lead to an overestimation of SWE by about 20%. It would therefore be beneficial if radar measurements could also be used to determine snow wetness. Our approach is to use radar wave attenuation in the snowpack, which depends on electrical properties of snow (permittivity and conductivity) which in turn depend on snow wetness. The relationship between radar wave attenuation and these electrical properties can be derived theoretically, while the relationship between electrical permittivity and snow wetness follows a known empirical formula, which also includes snow density. Snow wetness can therefore be determined from radar wave attenuation if the relationship between electrical conductivity and snow wetness is also known. In a laboratory test, three sets of measurements were made on initially dry 1 m thick snowpacks. Snow wetness was controlled by stepwise addition of water between radar measurements, and a linear relationship between electrical conductivity and snow wetness was established.


2020 ◽  
Vol 115 ◽  
pp. 102294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amir M. Alani ◽  
Iraklis Giannakis ◽  
Lilong Zou ◽  
Livia Lantini ◽  
Fabio Tosti

2011 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 329-340 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Hausmann ◽  
M. Behm

Abstract. Several caves in high elevated alpine regions host up to several meters thick ice. The age of the ice may exceed some hundreds or thousands of years. However, structure, formation and development of the ice are not fully understood and are subject to relatively recent investigation. The application of ground-penetrating radar (GPR) enables to determine thickness, volume, basal and internal structure of the ice and provides as such important constraints for related studies. We present results from four caves located in the Northern Calcareous Alps of Austria. We show that the ice is far from being uniform. The base has variable reflection signatures, which is related to the type and size of underlying debris. The internal structure of the cave ice is characterized by banded reflections. These reflection signatures are interpreted as thin layers of sediments and might help to understand the ice formation by representing isochrones. Overall, the relatively low electromagnetic wave speed suggests that the ice is temperate, and that a liquid water content of about 2% is distributed homogenously in the ice.


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