An initial investigation of the Greenland perennial firn aquifer

University Of Utah, Salt Lake City UT

Investigators

Abstract

The intellectual merit of this project lies in the first efforts at measurement of a newly discovered component of the Greenland Ice Sheet mass balance. The perennial firn aquifer (PFA) stores liquid water in the subsurface firn year-round, including throughout the winter. It was discovered in April 2011, but there were no measurements made within the PFA, thus its volume estimate and even formation process are unknown except for those from modeling. This project will use a wide variety of techniques to provide the first measurements of liquid water storage in the PFA. Density profiles and even simple observations of PFA stratigraphy assessing the relative proportions of firn, water, and solid ice will provide valuable data needed to calculate the unknown mass of the PFA. The project will also be able to identify the best measurement techniques, for further more complete assessment and future monitoring of the PFA, because a suite of measurement technologies will be tested during this field research. This proposal is funded through the EAGER mechanism because these unique drilling and measurement conditions force the research to be conducted in an exploratory manner with some aspects encountering high risk, but with high reward. The broader impacts of the project include the benefits of increased understanding of a new component of mass storage: this understanding is required for improvement in sea level rise estimates. Direct educational benefits include training of a graduate student in a standard academic setting as well as in preparation and execution of field work in harsh Arctic conditions. Exposure of the project science and its broader context of climate change will be communicated to the public through NASA?s outreach and education infrastructure.