Profiles of Temporal Thaw Depths Beneath Two Arctic Stream Types Using Ground-Penetrating Radar

Thaw depths beneath arctic streams may have significant impact on the seasonal development of hyporheic zone hydraulics. To investigate thaw progression over the 2004 summer season we acquired a series of ground-penetrating radar (GPR) profiles at five sites from May–September, using 100, 200 and 40...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Permafrost and Periglacial Processes
Main Authors: Brosten, Troy R., Bradford, John H., McNamara, James P., Zarnetske, Jay P., Gooseff, Michael N., Bowden, W. Breck
Format: Text
Language:unknown
Published: ScholarWorks 2006
Subjects:
ground-penetrating radar
permafrost
thaw bulb
arctic streams
Geosciences
Earth Sciences
Geophysics and Seismology
Arctic
Online Access:https://scholarworks.boisestate.edu/cgiss_facpubs/79
https://doi.org/10.1002/ppp.566
Description
Summary:Thaw depths beneath arctic streams may have significant impact on the seasonal development of hyporheic zone hydraulics. To investigate thaw progression over the 2004 summer season we acquired a series of ground-penetrating radar (GPR) profiles at five sites from May–September, using 100, 200 and 400 MHz antennas. We selected sites with the objective of including stream reaches that span a range of geomorphologic conditions on Alaska's North Slope. Thaw depths interpreted from GPR data were constrained by both recorded subsurface temperature profiles and by pressing a metal probe through the active layer to the point of refusal. We found that low-energy stream environments react much more slowly to seasonal solar input and maintain thaw thicknesses longer throughout the late season whereas thaw depths increase rapidly within high-energy streams at the beginning of the season and decrease over the late season period.

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