Geophysical measurements of the southernmost microglacier in Europe suggest permafrost occurrence in the Pirin Mountains (Bulgaria)
There are no large glaciers in the territory of Bulgaria, but small patches of snow and firn have been observed in the high mountains at the end of summer. Perennial snow patches and microglaciers are considered indicators of permafrost occurrence. The results from the first detailed geophysical inv...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:223b9bb7cf9e476faea7f277efab8811 2023-05-15T17:56:55+02:00 Geophysical measurements of the southernmost microglacier in Europe suggest permafrost occurrence in the Pirin Mountains (Bulgaria) G. Georgieva C. Tzankov A. Kisyov 2022-12-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4847-2022 https://doaj.org/article/223b9bb7cf9e476faea7f277efab8811 EN eng Copernicus Publications https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/16/4847/2022/tc-16-4847-2022.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-16-4847-2022 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/223b9bb7cf9e476faea7f277efab8811 The Cryosphere, Vol 16, Pp 4847-4863 (2022) Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 article 2022 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4847-2022 2022-12-30T20:07:22Z There are no large glaciers in the territory of Bulgaria, but small patches of snow and firn have been observed in the high mountains at the end of summer. Perennial snow patches and microglaciers are considered indicators of permafrost occurrence. The results from the first detailed geophysical investigations of the Snezhnika glacieret, considered to be the southernmost microglacier in Europe, situated in the Golyam Kazan cirque, Pirin Mountains, Bulgaria, are presented in the paper. Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and 2D electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) were used to estimate the thickness of the microglacier as well as its subsurface structure. Measurements started in 2018 and continued over the next 2 years in order to assess changes in its size and thickness. The mean thickness of Snezhnika is about 4–6 m, reaching 8 m or probably more in some areas. ERT measurements of the deeper parts of the microglacier beds show high electrical resistivities reaching over 60 000 Ω m at a depth of 4–10 m. An anomaly at this depth is likewise distinguishable on the GPR profiles. These anomalies are interpreted as permafrost areas and were consistently observed on the ERT and GPR profiles in the 2 years of the study. These results imply for the first time the existence of permafrost in the Pirin Mountains and in Bulgaria. Article in Journal/Newspaper permafrost The Cryosphere Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles The Cryosphere 16 12 4847 4863 |
institution |
Open Polar |
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Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
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Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 G. Georgieva C. Tzankov A. Kisyov Geophysical measurements of the southernmost microglacier in Europe suggest permafrost occurrence in the Pirin Mountains (Bulgaria) |
topic_facet |
Environmental sciences GE1-350 Geology QE1-996.5 |
description |
There are no large glaciers in the territory of Bulgaria, but small patches of snow and firn have been observed in the high mountains at the end of summer. Perennial snow patches and microglaciers are considered indicators of permafrost occurrence. The results from the first detailed geophysical investigations of the Snezhnika glacieret, considered to be the southernmost microglacier in Europe, situated in the Golyam Kazan cirque, Pirin Mountains, Bulgaria, are presented in the paper. Ground-penetrating radar (GPR) and 2D electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) were used to estimate the thickness of the microglacier as well as its subsurface structure. Measurements started in 2018 and continued over the next 2 years in order to assess changes in its size and thickness. The mean thickness of Snezhnika is about 4–6 m, reaching 8 m or probably more in some areas. ERT measurements of the deeper parts of the microglacier beds show high electrical resistivities reaching over 60 000 Ω m at a depth of 4–10 m. An anomaly at this depth is likewise distinguishable on the GPR profiles. These anomalies are interpreted as permafrost areas and were consistently observed on the ERT and GPR profiles in the 2 years of the study. These results imply for the first time the existence of permafrost in the Pirin Mountains and in Bulgaria. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
G. Georgieva C. Tzankov A. Kisyov |
author_facet |
G. Georgieva C. Tzankov A. Kisyov |
author_sort |
G. Georgieva |
title |
Geophysical measurements of the southernmost microglacier in Europe suggest permafrost occurrence in the Pirin Mountains (Bulgaria) |
title_short |
Geophysical measurements of the southernmost microglacier in Europe suggest permafrost occurrence in the Pirin Mountains (Bulgaria) |
title_full |
Geophysical measurements of the southernmost microglacier in Europe suggest permafrost occurrence in the Pirin Mountains (Bulgaria) |
title_fullStr |
Geophysical measurements of the southernmost microglacier in Europe suggest permafrost occurrence in the Pirin Mountains (Bulgaria) |
title_full_unstemmed |
Geophysical measurements of the southernmost microglacier in Europe suggest permafrost occurrence in the Pirin Mountains (Bulgaria) |
title_sort |
geophysical measurements of the southernmost microglacier in europe suggest permafrost occurrence in the pirin mountains (bulgaria) |
publisher |
Copernicus Publications |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4847-2022 https://doaj.org/article/223b9bb7cf9e476faea7f277efab8811 |
genre |
permafrost The Cryosphere |
genre_facet |
permafrost The Cryosphere |
op_source |
The Cryosphere, Vol 16, Pp 4847-4863 (2022) |
op_relation |
https://tc.copernicus.org/articles/16/4847/2022/tc-16-4847-2022.pdf https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0416 https://doaj.org/toc/1994-0424 doi:10.5194/tc-16-4847-2022 1994-0416 1994-0424 https://doaj.org/article/223b9bb7cf9e476faea7f277efab8811 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.5194/tc-16-4847-2022 |
container_title |
The Cryosphere |
container_volume |
16 |
container_issue |
12 |
container_start_page |
4847 |
op_container_end_page |
4863 |
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1766165238152953856 |