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REsurvey of Multi-parametric properties of the Arctic Permafrost (FROST - REMAP)
Call year: 2026
Status: active
IADC_id: 835
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RIS - Project:
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Project description:
The relevance of investigating the temporal evolution of the hidden signatures of permafrost in Polar regions has been widely recognized in the scientific community in the recent past. Due to its strong sensitivity to the atmospheric temperature changes caused by the global warming, the permafrost properties continuously change over time. The permafrost degradation leads to significant modifications in local geomorphology, hydrology, vegetation, wildlife dynamics and greenhouse emissions (Hjort et al., 2022; Streletskiy et al., 2015). Then, the integration of in-situ geophysical investigation methods may strongly contribute to the characterization of the permafrost properties and their changes over time. On the other hand, the Arctic environment, the Svalbard islands and their extreme logistical conditions pose significant operational challenges in the execution of geophysical campaigns. Thus, we propose to investigate through a geophysical multi-parametric approach the properties of the permafrost in the same study areas located in Ny-Ålesund (Svalbard) which was the target site of the still active ERTAFROST project (RIS – 10307). In its framework, in the summer of 2015, several Electrical Resistivity Tomographies (ERT) and a Capacitively – Coupled Resistivity (CCR) survey were carried out by the geophysical group of CNR – IMAA. The shallowest surveys contributed to resolve a 1 m active layer overlying a flat freezing front of the permafrost, whereas the higher penetration depth investigations (70 – 80 m) highlighted a greater lateral heterogeneity of the permafrost structure. On these grounds, we aim to repeat these surveys more than ten years later to identify possible modifications in permafrost conditions in the target area in this time interval. We will both use new and more advanced instrumentation recently acquired in the framework of ITINERIS project (Italian integrated environmental research infrastructures system - Next Generation EU, PNRR, M4C2 inv.3.1 - IR0000032) and we will adopt an integrated geophysical investigation approach in which electrical surveys will be flanked by seismic and magnetotelluric (MT) surveys. As for the latter, the feasibility of MT measurements in high-latitude regions - where strong geomagnetic variations driven by auroral activity and currents in the ionosphere and magnetosphere are common —will be evaluated, since under these conditions the plane-wave approximation is not fully reliable. The FROST - REMAP project will then act as a testbed to refine the processing methodologies required to isolate the weak MT signal from anthropogenic noise, to characterize the electrical resistivity structure of the Arctic subsurface down to several tens of kilometers. We finally plan to obtain new ERT images to be compared with the ERTAFROST ones, to map possible time changes in the ice content and in the extension of unfrozen ground surrounded by permafrost (i.e. talik) previously retrieved; furthermore, the availability of other complementary geophysical images (i.e. seismic and MT) would help to further constrain the interpretation of the retrieved subsoil models. This proposal well fits into the planned activities of the on-going PRORIS project (PRogramma di RIcerca Spaziale e integrazione digitale di dati multipiattaforma per la creazione di modelli digitali del territorio, dell’ambiente e delle infrastrutture critiche- DIT.AD022.208.001-FOE 2022), in which the involvement of the geophysical group of CNR – IMAA will consist specifically in testing the feasibility of geophysical surveys in the lunar environment. The Arctic and Svalbard regions provide excellent terrestrial analogues: their crystalline rocks and permafrost exhibit very high electrical resistivity, closely resembling the dry, cold, and highly resistive lunar regolith and subsurface. These conditions make polar environments ideal for testing instruments and methodologies for future lunar exploration. As part of the planned activities, we will also test newly developed prototype seismic sensors created within the MODERN project underway, “Advanced Seismic Interferometry Methods and Technologies for Engineering Seismology” (MUR FISA-2022-00764 funding"). References Hjort,J., Streletskiy,D., Doré,G.,Wu, Q.,Bjella,K., &Luoto, M. (2022).Impactsof permafrost degradationon infrastructure.Nature Reviews Earth & Environment, 3(1), 24–38. https://doi.org/10.1038/s43017?021?00247?8 Streletskiy, D. A., Anisimov, O., & Vasiliev, A. (2015). Permafrost degradation. In Snow and ice?related hazards, risks, and disasters (pp. 303–344). Academic Press.
National/International Cooperation:
CNRS, IUGG Inter-Association EMSEV, CNR (IGAG and IREA), INGV, INOGS
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