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Integrated Geophysical Investigations of a Methane Releasing Pingo in a Changing Permafrost Environment, Svalbard / CRAIG HAMMOCK

Swansea University Author: CRAIG HAMMOCK

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DOI (Published version): 10.23889/SUthesis.63653

Abstract

Open-system pingos form a fluid-flow conduit through continuous permafrost that enables the release of methane; a potent greenhouse gas. However, the factors that impact the formation and structure of open-system pingos remains poorly understood, and the parallels that these terrestrial landforms ha...

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Published: Swansea, Wales, UK 2023
Institution: Swansea University
Degree level: Doctoral
Degree name: Ph.D
Supervisor: Kulessa, Bernd; Hubbard, Alun; Hodson, Andrew J.; Hiemstra, John F. and Thompson, Sarah S.
URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa63653
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spelling v2 63653 2023-06-16 Integrated Geophysical Investigations of a Methane Releasing Pingo in a Changing Permafrost Environment, Svalbard 88b830556d5a13a3773c1577b4edf6b2 CRAIG HAMMOCK CRAIG HAMMOCK true false 2023-06-16 Open-system pingos form a fluid-flow conduit through continuous permafrost that enables the release of methane; a potent greenhouse gas. However, the factors that impact the formation and structure of open-system pingos remains poorly understood, and the parallels that these terrestrial landforms have with methane emitting submarine forms is uncertain. In this thesis, a series of geophysical investigations are conducted on Lagoon Pingo, Svalbard: a coastal open-system pingo that emits locally significant quantities of methane. In investigations into pingo structure through electrical resistivity tomography, resistivities imply that Lagoon Pingo is dominated by segregation ice, thereby highlight the impact of frost-susceptible, fine-grained sediments on pingo formation. Seismic investigations outline the depth of these sediments locally (~68 m), and indicate an uncertainty surrounding the flow path of local groundwaters. Constraining the groundwater dynamics through self-potential investigations, elevated magnitudes in potential measurements on the northern side of the pingo are interpreted as groundwaters flowing beneath the pingo complex from an alluvial fan on the northern side of Lagoon Pingo. Transient electromagnetics, when combined with seismic velocities within a four-phase model, identify a heterogeneous layer containing alluvial fan deposits beneath the open-system pingo. The integrated geophysical observations highlight the role that alluvial fans can have in pingo growth, by providing a hydraulically conductive medium through poorly permeable sediments characteristic of Holocene marine environments. This can act as a confined aquifer, explaining the artesian conditions at Lagoon Pingo. This also provides sedimentological circumstances that were favourable for previous pockmark formation, and may explain how a spring has persisted through Holocene sedimentation. These integrated geophysical investigations therefore highlight the role that alluvial fans have in pingo formation, and indicate how open-system pingos may evolve from submarine seeps and pockmarks. E-Thesis Swansea, Wales, UK Pingo, permafrost, geophysics, methane release 19 5 2023 2023-05-19 10.23889/SUthesis.63653 COLLEGE NANME COLLEGE CODE Swansea University Kulessa, Bernd; Hubbard, Alun; Hodson, Andrew J.; Hiemstra, John F. and Thompson, Sarah S. Doctoral Ph.D College of Science, Swansea University and the Research Council of Norway through its Centre of Excellence funding scheme (Grant No. 223259) 2023-10-03T15:58:52.3246817 2023-06-16T09:58:25.9079863 Faculty of Science and Engineering School of Biosciences, Geography and Physics - Geography CRAIG HAMMOCK 1 63653__27866__7ce6772344f14f41853ccf499c449a13.pdf 2023_Hammock_CP.final.63653.pdf 2023-06-16T10:01:18.8397557 Output 10691212 application/pdf E-Thesis – open access true Copyright: The Author, Craig P. Hammock, 2023. Distributed under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (CC BY 4.0). true eng https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
title Integrated Geophysical Investigations of a Methane Releasing Pingo in a Changing Permafrost Environment, Svalbard
spellingShingle Integrated Geophysical Investigations of a Methane Releasing Pingo in a Changing Permafrost Environment, Svalbard
CRAIG HAMMOCK
title_short Integrated Geophysical Investigations of a Methane Releasing Pingo in a Changing Permafrost Environment, Svalbard
title_full Integrated Geophysical Investigations of a Methane Releasing Pingo in a Changing Permafrost Environment, Svalbard
title_fullStr Integrated Geophysical Investigations of a Methane Releasing Pingo in a Changing Permafrost Environment, Svalbard
title_full_unstemmed Integrated Geophysical Investigations of a Methane Releasing Pingo in a Changing Permafrost Environment, Svalbard
title_sort Integrated Geophysical Investigations of a Methane Releasing Pingo in a Changing Permafrost Environment, Svalbard
author_id_str_mv 88b830556d5a13a3773c1577b4edf6b2
author_id_fullname_str_mv 88b830556d5a13a3773c1577b4edf6b2_***_CRAIG HAMMOCK
author CRAIG HAMMOCK
author2 CRAIG HAMMOCK
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publishDate 2023
institution Swansea University
doi_str_mv 10.23889/SUthesis.63653
college_str Faculty of Science and Engineering
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hierarchy_top_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
department_str School of Biosciences, Geography and Physics - Geography{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Science and Engineering{{{_:::_}}}School of Biosciences, Geography and Physics - Geography
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description Open-system pingos form a fluid-flow conduit through continuous permafrost that enables the release of methane; a potent greenhouse gas. However, the factors that impact the formation and structure of open-system pingos remains poorly understood, and the parallels that these terrestrial landforms have with methane emitting submarine forms is uncertain. In this thesis, a series of geophysical investigations are conducted on Lagoon Pingo, Svalbard: a coastal open-system pingo that emits locally significant quantities of methane. In investigations into pingo structure through electrical resistivity tomography, resistivities imply that Lagoon Pingo is dominated by segregation ice, thereby highlight the impact of frost-susceptible, fine-grained sediments on pingo formation. Seismic investigations outline the depth of these sediments locally (~68 m), and indicate an uncertainty surrounding the flow path of local groundwaters. Constraining the groundwater dynamics through self-potential investigations, elevated magnitudes in potential measurements on the northern side of the pingo are interpreted as groundwaters flowing beneath the pingo complex from an alluvial fan on the northern side of Lagoon Pingo. Transient electromagnetics, when combined with seismic velocities within a four-phase model, identify a heterogeneous layer containing alluvial fan deposits beneath the open-system pingo. The integrated geophysical observations highlight the role that alluvial fans can have in pingo growth, by providing a hydraulically conductive medium through poorly permeable sediments characteristic of Holocene marine environments. This can act as a confined aquifer, explaining the artesian conditions at Lagoon Pingo. This also provides sedimentological circumstances that were favourable for previous pockmark formation, and may explain how a spring has persisted through Holocene sedimentation. These integrated geophysical investigations therefore highlight the role that alluvial fans have in pingo formation, and indicate how open-system pingos may evolve from submarine seeps and pockmarks.
published_date 2023-05-19T15:58:53Z
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