Drilling and installation of boreholes for permafrost thermal monitoring on Livingston Island in the maritime Antarctic

• Published in: Permafrost and Periglacial Processes
• Main Authors: Ramos, Miguel, Hasler, Andreas, Vieira, Gonzalo, Hauck, Christian, Gruber, Stephan
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2009
• Subjects: Antarctic; Livingston Island; Antarc*; Antarctica; permafrost; Permafrost and Periglacial Processes
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/ppp.635; https://api.wiley.com/onlinelibrary/tdm/v1/articles/10.1002%2Fppp.635; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1002/ppp.635

Abstract Three new boreholes up to 25 m deep were drilled on Mount Reina Sofía (275 m a.s.l.), Livingston Island, where previous near‐surface temperature measurements (mean annual ground temperatures of −2.1 to −2.6°C) have indicated the presence of permafrost. A thermistor chain and logging system were installed in the deepest borehole, while the others were equipped with individual miniature temperature loggers (iButtons). Initial data from the 25 m borehole indicates a permafrost body several decametres thick. Future data from these boreholes are expected to provide insight into ground temperature evolution in maritime Antarctica. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.