Characterizing South Pole Firn Structure With Fiber Optic Sensing
Abstract The firn layer covers 98% of Antarctica's ice sheets, protecting underlying glacial ice from the external environment. Accurate measurement of firn properties is essential for assessing cryosphere mass balance and climate change impacts. Characterizing firn structure through core sampl...
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:732a45c175fc47fbac13fa766fa4520a 2024-09-15T17:48:21+00:00 Characterizing South Pole Firn Structure With Fiber Optic Sensing Yan Yang Zhongwen Zhan Martin Karrenbach Auden Reid‐McLaughlin Ettore Biondi Douglas A. Wiens Richard C. Aster 2024-07-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL109183 https://doaj.org/article/732a45c175fc47fbac13fa766fa4520a EN eng Wiley https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL109183 https://doaj.org/toc/0094-8276 https://doaj.org/toc/1944-8007 1944-8007 0094-8276 doi:10.1029/2024GL109183 https://doaj.org/article/732a45c175fc47fbac13fa766fa4520a Geophysical Research Letters, Vol 51, Iss 13, Pp n/a-n/a (2024) Geophysics. Cosmic physics QC801-809 article 2024 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL109183 2024-08-05T17:48:58Z Abstract The firn layer covers 98% of Antarctica's ice sheets, protecting underlying glacial ice from the external environment. Accurate measurement of firn properties is essential for assessing cryosphere mass balance and climate change impacts. Characterizing firn structure through core sampling is expensive and logistically challenging. Seismic surveys, which translate seismic velocities into firn densities, offer an efficient alternative. This study employs Distributed Acoustic Sensing technology to transform an existing fiber‐optic cable near the South Pole into a multichannel, low‐maintenance, continuously interrogated seismic array. The data resolve 16 seismic wave propagation modes at frequencies up to 100 Hz that constrain P and S wave velocities as functions of depth. Using co‐located geophones for ambient noise interferometry, we resolve very weak radial anisotropy. Leveraging nearby SPICEcore firn density data, we find prior empirical density‐velocity relationships underestimate firn air content by over 15%. We present a new empirical relationship for the South Pole region. Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* South pole South pole Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles Geophysical Research Letters 51 13 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
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ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
Geophysics. Cosmic physics QC801-809 |
spellingShingle |
Geophysics. Cosmic physics QC801-809 Yan Yang Zhongwen Zhan Martin Karrenbach Auden Reid‐McLaughlin Ettore Biondi Douglas A. Wiens Richard C. Aster Characterizing South Pole Firn Structure With Fiber Optic Sensing |
topic_facet |
Geophysics. Cosmic physics QC801-809 |
description |
Abstract The firn layer covers 98% of Antarctica's ice sheets, protecting underlying glacial ice from the external environment. Accurate measurement of firn properties is essential for assessing cryosphere mass balance and climate change impacts. Characterizing firn structure through core sampling is expensive and logistically challenging. Seismic surveys, which translate seismic velocities into firn densities, offer an efficient alternative. This study employs Distributed Acoustic Sensing technology to transform an existing fiber‐optic cable near the South Pole into a multichannel, low‐maintenance, continuously interrogated seismic array. The data resolve 16 seismic wave propagation modes at frequencies up to 100 Hz that constrain P and S wave velocities as functions of depth. Using co‐located geophones for ambient noise interferometry, we resolve very weak radial anisotropy. Leveraging nearby SPICEcore firn density data, we find prior empirical density‐velocity relationships underestimate firn air content by over 15%. We present a new empirical relationship for the South Pole region. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Yan Yang Zhongwen Zhan Martin Karrenbach Auden Reid‐McLaughlin Ettore Biondi Douglas A. Wiens Richard C. Aster |
author_facet |
Yan Yang Zhongwen Zhan Martin Karrenbach Auden Reid‐McLaughlin Ettore Biondi Douglas A. Wiens Richard C. Aster |
author_sort |
Yan Yang |
title |
Characterizing South Pole Firn Structure With Fiber Optic Sensing |
title_short |
Characterizing South Pole Firn Structure With Fiber Optic Sensing |
title_full |
Characterizing South Pole Firn Structure With Fiber Optic Sensing |
title_fullStr |
Characterizing South Pole Firn Structure With Fiber Optic Sensing |
title_full_unstemmed |
Characterizing South Pole Firn Structure With Fiber Optic Sensing |
title_sort |
characterizing south pole firn structure with fiber optic sensing |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2024 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL109183 https://doaj.org/article/732a45c175fc47fbac13fa766fa4520a |
genre |
Antarc* South pole South pole |
genre_facet |
Antarc* South pole South pole |
op_source |
Geophysical Research Letters, Vol 51, Iss 13, Pp n/a-n/a (2024) |
op_relation |
https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL109183 https://doaj.org/toc/0094-8276 https://doaj.org/toc/1944-8007 1944-8007 0094-8276 doi:10.1029/2024GL109183 https://doaj.org/article/732a45c175fc47fbac13fa766fa4520a |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL109183 |
container_title |
Geophysical Research Letters |
container_volume |
51 |
container_issue |
13 |
_version_ |
1810289500367093760 |