British Geological Survey

About: British Geological Survey is a government organization based out in Nottingham, United Kingdom. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Groundwater & Aquifer. The organization has 2561 authors who have published 7326 publications receiving 241944 citations.

Applications of remote sensing to groundwater hydrology

Abstract: Applications of remote sensing to groundwater hydrology are reviewed on the basis of published literature, lesser known accounts and the authors’ own experiences. The major application is to ground water exploration, but others include; subsidence monitoring and the location of thermal waters and steam for geothermal energy. Some of the electromagnetic techniques used for these applications are reviewed. These include: aerial and satellite photography, visible, near‐, middle‐ and thermal‐infrared scanner imagery and both imaging and ground‐penetrating radar. One of the main problem areas in the application of remote sensing to groundwater hydrology is related to the use of lineaments as an exploration guide. The definitions and concepts of lineaments, their geologic nature and hydrological function are discussed. It is concluded that despite some uncertainties and inconsistencies in the results, remote sensing is a useful technique for the study of groundwater hydrology and has aided the successful locati...

Snow contribution to first-year and second-year Arctic sea ice mass balance north of Svalbard

Abstract: The salinity and water oxygen isotope composition (δ18O) of twenty-nine first-year (FYI) and second-year (SYI) Arctic sea ice cores (total length 32.0 m) from the drifting ice pack north of Svalbard were examined to quantify the contribution of snow to sea ice mass. Five cores (total length 6.4 m) were analyzed for their structural composition showing variable contribution of 10-30% by granular ice. In these cores snow had been entrained in 6 to 28% of the total ice thickness. We found evidence of snow contribution in about three quarter of the sea ice cores, when surface granular layers had very low δ18O values. Snow contributed 7.5-9.7% to sea ice mass balance on average (including also cores with no snow) using δ18O mass balance calculations. In SYI cores snow fraction by mass (12.7-16.3%) was much higher than in FYI cores (3.3-4.4%), while the bulk salinity of FYI (4.9) was distinctively higher than for SYI (2.7). We surmise that oxygen isotopes and salinity profiles can give information on the age of the ice and allows to distinguish between FYI and SYI (or older) ice in the area north of Svalbard. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.