Deep groundwater and potential subsurface habitats beneath an Antarctic dry valley
The occurrence of groundwater in Antarctica, particularly in the ice-free regions and along the coastal margins is poorly understood. Here we use an airborne transient electromagnetic (AEM) sensor to produce extensive imagery of resistivity beneath Taylor Valley. Regional-scale zones of low subsurfa...
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ftuniaarhuspubl:oai:pure.atira.dk:publications/37dc8634-70ff-4803-8ab1-fa9deec613c4 2023-12-31T09:59:39+01:00 Deep groundwater and potential subsurface habitats beneath an Antarctic dry valley Mikucki, J. A. Auken, E. Tulaczyk, S. Virginia, R. A. Schamper, C. Sørensen, K. I. Doran, P. T. Dugan, H. Foley, N. 2015-04-28 https://pure.au.dk/portal/da/publications/deep-groundwater-and-potential-subsurface-habitats-beneath-an-antarctic-dry-valley(37dc8634-70ff-4803-8ab1-fa9deec613c4).html https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms7831 http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84925960263&partnerID=8YFLogxK eng eng https://pure.au.dk/portal/da/publications/deep-groundwater-and-potential-subsurface-habitats-beneath-an-antarctic-dry-valley(37dc8634-70ff-4803-8ab1-fa9deec613c4).html info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Mikucki , J A , Auken , E , Tulaczyk , S , Virginia , R A , Schamper , C , Sørensen , K I , Doran , P T , Dugan , H & Foley , N 2015 , ' Deep groundwater and potential subsurface habitats beneath an Antarctic dry valley ' , Nature Communications , vol. 6 , 6831 . https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms7831 article 2015 ftuniaarhuspubl https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms7831 2023-12-07T00:01:06Z The occurrence of groundwater in Antarctica, particularly in the ice-free regions and along the coastal margins is poorly understood. Here we use an airborne transient electromagnetic (AEM) sensor to produce extensive imagery of resistivity beneath Taylor Valley. Regional-scale zones of low subsurface resistivity were detected that are inconsistent with the high resistivity of glacier ice or dry permafrost in this region. We interpret these results as an indication that liquid, with sufficiently high solute content, exists at temperatures well below freezing and considered within the range suitable for microbial life. These inferred brines are widespread within permafrost and extend below glaciers and lakes. One system emanates from below Taylor Glacier into Lake Bonney and a second system connects the ocean with the eastern 18km of the valley. A connection between these two basins was not detected to the depth limitation of the AEM survey (∼350m). Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Ice permafrost Taylor Glacier Aarhus University: Research Nature Communications 6 1 |
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Open Polar |
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Aarhus University: Research |
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ftuniaarhuspubl |
language |
English |
description |
The occurrence of groundwater in Antarctica, particularly in the ice-free regions and along the coastal margins is poorly understood. Here we use an airborne transient electromagnetic (AEM) sensor to produce extensive imagery of resistivity beneath Taylor Valley. Regional-scale zones of low subsurface resistivity were detected that are inconsistent with the high resistivity of glacier ice or dry permafrost in this region. We interpret these results as an indication that liquid, with sufficiently high solute content, exists at temperatures well below freezing and considered within the range suitable for microbial life. These inferred brines are widespread within permafrost and extend below glaciers and lakes. One system emanates from below Taylor Glacier into Lake Bonney and a second system connects the ocean with the eastern 18km of the valley. A connection between these two basins was not detected to the depth limitation of the AEM survey (∼350m). |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Mikucki, J. A. Auken, E. Tulaczyk, S. Virginia, R. A. Schamper, C. Sørensen, K. I. Doran, P. T. Dugan, H. Foley, N. |
spellingShingle |
Mikucki, J. A. Auken, E. Tulaczyk, S. Virginia, R. A. Schamper, C. Sørensen, K. I. Doran, P. T. Dugan, H. Foley, N. Deep groundwater and potential subsurface habitats beneath an Antarctic dry valley |
author_facet |
Mikucki, J. A. Auken, E. Tulaczyk, S. Virginia, R. A. Schamper, C. Sørensen, K. I. Doran, P. T. Dugan, H. Foley, N. |
author_sort |
Mikucki, J. A. |
title |
Deep groundwater and potential subsurface habitats beneath an Antarctic dry valley |
title_short |
Deep groundwater and potential subsurface habitats beneath an Antarctic dry valley |
title_full |
Deep groundwater and potential subsurface habitats beneath an Antarctic dry valley |
title_fullStr |
Deep groundwater and potential subsurface habitats beneath an Antarctic dry valley |
title_full_unstemmed |
Deep groundwater and potential subsurface habitats beneath an Antarctic dry valley |
title_sort |
deep groundwater and potential subsurface habitats beneath an antarctic dry valley |
publishDate |
2015 |
url |
https://pure.au.dk/portal/da/publications/deep-groundwater-and-potential-subsurface-habitats-beneath-an-antarctic-dry-valley(37dc8634-70ff-4803-8ab1-fa9deec613c4).html https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms7831 http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84925960263&partnerID=8YFLogxK |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Ice permafrost Taylor Glacier |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctica Ice permafrost Taylor Glacier |
op_source |
Mikucki , J A , Auken , E , Tulaczyk , S , Virginia , R A , Schamper , C , Sørensen , K I , Doran , P T , Dugan , H & Foley , N 2015 , ' Deep groundwater and potential subsurface habitats beneath an Antarctic dry valley ' , Nature Communications , vol. 6 , 6831 . https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms7831 |
op_relation |
https://pure.au.dk/portal/da/publications/deep-groundwater-and-potential-subsurface-habitats-beneath-an-antarctic-dry-valley(37dc8634-70ff-4803-8ab1-fa9deec613c4).html |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms7831 |
container_title |
Nature Communications |
container_volume |
6 |
container_issue |
1 |
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1786840609015726080 |