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Influence of surface and subsurface heterogeneity on observed borehole temperatures at a mountain permafrost site in the Upper Engadine, Swiss Alps

  • Schneider, Sina Alpine Cryosphere and Geomorphology (ACAG), Department of Geosciences, University of Fribourg, Switzerland
  • Hoelzle, Martin Alpine Cryosphere and Geomorphology (ACAG), Department of Geosciences, University of Fribourg, Switzerland
  • Hauck, Christian Alpine Cryosphere and Geomorphology (ACAG), Department of Geosciences, University of Fribourg, Switzerland
    19.04.2012
Published in:
  • The Cryosphere. - 2012, vol. 6, p. 517-531
English Compared to lowland (polar) regions, permafrost in high mountain areas occurs in a large variety of surface and subsurface materials and textures. This work presents an eight-year (2002–2010) data set of borehole temperatures for five different (sub-) surface materials from a high alpine permafrost area, Murtèl-Corvatsch, Switzerland. The influence of the material on the thermal regime was investigated by borehole temperature data, the temperature at the top of the permafrost (TTOP-concept) and the apparent thermal diffusivity (ATD). The results show that during the last eight years, material-specific temperature changes were more significant than climate-induced temperature trends. At coarse blocky, ice-rich sites, no changes in active layer depth were observed, whereas the bedrock and the fine-grained sites appear to be highly sensitive to changes in the microclimate. The results confirm that the presence and growth of ice as well as a thermally driven air circulation within the subsurface are the key factors for the occurence and preservation of alpine permafrost.
Faculty
Faculté des sciences et de médecine
Department
Département de Géosciences
Language
  • English
Classification
Hydrology
License
License undefined
Identifiers
Persistent URL
https://folia.unifr.ch/unifr/documents/302500
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