Shallow hot-point drill system for active layer temperature measurement along Zhongshan–Dome A traverse, Antarctica

• Published in: Annals of Glaciology
• Main Authors: Yazhou Li, Xiaopeng Fan, Pavel G. Talalay, Yinke Dou, Siyu Lu, Shichang Kang, Xiao Li, Jialin Hong
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge University Press 2021
• Subjects: Hot-point drill; ice drilling; penetration rate; snow–firn temperature; thermal equilibrium; Meteorology. Climatology; QC851-999; Zhongshan; Zhongshan Station; Annals of Glaciology; Antarc*; Antarctica; Ice Sheet
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1017/aog.2020.87; https://doaj.org/article/1a90bae719c848fcaa463bc8892fa724

In glaciology, snow–firn temperature at 10 m is considered a representation of the mean annual air temperature at the surface (MAAT) of the studied site. Although MAAT is an important parameter in ice-sheet investigations, it has not been widely measured in Antarctica. To measure the 10 m snow–firn temperature in Antarctica, a shallow hot-point drill system is designed. In this simple and lightweight system, a hot-point drill can melt boreholes with a diameter of 34 mm in the snow–firn to a depth of 30 m and a temperature sensors string can measure the borehole temperature precisely. In the 2018/19 field season, 16 boreholes along the Zhongshan–Dome A traverse were drilled, and the borehole temperature was measured. Although certain problems existed pertaining to the hot-point drill, a total depth of ~244 m was successfully drilled at an average penetration rate of ~10 m h−1. After borehole drilling, ~12–15 h were generally required for the borehole to achieve thermal equilibrium with the surroundings. Preliminary results demonstrated that the 10 m snow–firn temperature along the traverse route was affected by the increasing altitude and latitude, and it decreased gradually with an increase in the distance from Zhongshan station.