Upward-looking Impulse Radar for continuous monitoring of Snow Accumulation and Melt in Greenland (URSAM)

• Applicant: Dr. Achim Heilig
• Subject Area: Physical Geography
• Term: from 2015 to 2020
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 280330996

Despite decades of research on the Greenland ice sheet (GIS), temporally continuous determination of snow and firn properties, especially the total mass of accumulation and liquid water content, has not been performed yet. However, in changing climatic preconditions, such monitoring is of utmost relevance to better understand interactions of accumulation and melt in firn regions of the Greenland ice sheet. Through warmer temperatures more liquid water will percolate into the system. As a consequence, more latent heat is transported into the firn pack and stratigraphy changes accordingly. Percolating liquid water promotes the formation of massive ice layers, which most likely pond further water percolation. However, such feedback reactions between accumulation and melt are hardly understood and, correspondingly, firn models lack in correct predictions of surface mass balances. This proposal aims at continuous monitoring of accumulation and melt processes within the Western Greenland ice sheet utilizing upward-looking impulse radar technology. The envisaged project can, to a great extent, improve the current understanding of interactions of accumulation and melt, and, in particular the influence of melt processes on firn stratigraphy within the percolation zone of the western ice sheet. The overall goal of this project is a deeper process understanding for a more accurate determination of surface mass balance in this area.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants