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Groundwater Thermal Regime in a Glacial Complex
Author(s) -
Parsons Myles L.
Publication year - 1970
Publication title -
water resources research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.863
H-Index - 217
eISSN - 1944-7973
pISSN - 0043-1397
DOI - 10.1029/wr006i006p01701
Subject(s) - groundwater , geology , groundwater flow , hydrogeology , water table , borehole , terrain , geomorphology , hydrology (agriculture) , groundwater model , glacial period , structural basin , soil science , geotechnical engineering , aquifer , ecology , biology
Numerical simulation of the groundwater thermal regime in a glacial complex in the northern Ontario clay belt and numerical modeling of a hypothetical groundwater basin suggest that groundwater flow has a significant effect on the subsurface temperature field. Borehole temperature measurements reflect the hydrogeologic contrast between the highly permeable eskerine deposits and the adjacent less permeable clay and till strata. The eskerine groundwater is several degrees warmer and possesses lower spatial temperature variations than does the clay‐till groundwater. Numerical simulation of the temperature field indicates that the temperature variations are related to differences in thermal conductivities of the flow media, to variations in the magnitude of the groundwater flux between esker and clay‐till flow systems, and to spatial variations in the water table temperature. The latter factor probably reflects contrasting surface cover conditions between the sandy eskerine terrain and the organic terrain of the clay plain.