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Integrated Borehole, Radar, and Seismic Velocity Analysis Reveals Dynamic Spatial Variations Within a Firn Aquifer in Southeast Greenland
Author(s) -
Killingbeck S. F.,
Schmerr N. C.,
Montgomery L. N.,
Booth A. D.,
Livermore P. W.,
Guandique J.,
Miller O. L.,
Burdick S.,
Forster R. R.,
Koenig L. S.,
Legchenko A.,
Ligtenberg S. R. M.,
Miège C.,
Solomon D. K.,
West L. J.
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1029/2020gl089335
Subject(s) - firn , geology , aquifer , ice sheet , geomorphology , glacier , borehole , groundwater , paleontology , geotechnical engineering
Perennial water storage in firn aquifers has been observed within the lower percolation zone of the southeast Greenland ice sheet. Spatially distributed seismic and radar observations, made ~50 km upstream of the Helheim Glacier terminus, reveal spatial variations of seismic velocity within a firn aquifer. From 1.65 to 1.8 km elevation, shear‐wave velocity ( Vs ) is 1,290 ± 180 m/s in the unsaturated firn, decreasing below the water table (~15 m depth) to 1,130 ± 250 m/s. Below 1.65 km elevation, Vs in the saturated firn is 1,270 ± 220 m/s. The compressional‐to‐shear velocity ratio decreases in the downstream saturated zone, from 2.30 ± 0.54 to 2.01 ± 0.46, closer to its value for pure ice (2.00). Consistent with colocated firn cores, these results imply an increasing concentration of ice in the downstream sites, reducing the porosity and storage potential of the firn likely caused by episodic melt and freeze during the evolution of the aquifer.