MRI: Development of a High-power, Large Antenna Array and Ultrawideband Radar for a Basler for Sounding and Imaging of Fast-flowing Glaciers and Mapping Internal Layers
General
Organisation
Department
Project start
01.01.2012
Project end
31.12.2016
Type of project
ARMAP/NSF
Project theme
Cryosphere
Project topic
Cryosphere
Link to project website
Fieldwork / Study
Fieldwork country
Greenland
Fieldwork region
Greenland, Mid-West
Fieldwork location
Geolocation is 67.0179977417, -50.69400024414
Fieldwork start
01.09.2015
Fieldwork end
17.09.2015
SAR information
Fieldwork / Study
Fieldwork country
Greenland
Fieldwork region
Greenland, Mid-West
Fieldwork location
Geolocation is 69.2166667, -51.1
Fieldwork start
25.04.2016
Fieldwork end
27.04.2016
SAR information
Fieldwork / Study
Fieldwork country
Greenland
Fieldwork region
Greenland, Mid-West
Fieldwork location
Geolocation is 67.0179977417, -50.69400024414
Fieldwork start
11.04.2016
Fieldwork end
25.04.2016
SAR information
Fieldwork / Study
Fieldwork country
Greenland
Fieldwork region
Greenland, North-West
Fieldwork location
Geolocation is 77.4836, -69.2593
Fieldwork start
27.04.2016
Fieldwork end
04.05.2016
SAR information
Log in to view contact information and more
Project details
01.09.2020
Science / project plan
.
Science / project summary
This MRI award supports the development of radar instrumentation for fine-resolution measurements on polar ice sheets to enable a wide range of scientific investigations. Specifically, a high-power, ultra- wideband, large-antenna multi-channel coherent radar, and an active target/multistatic receiver (ATMR) will be developed. The ultra-wideband radar will operate over the frequency range of 150-600 MHz with a large cross-track array of 24-36 elements. The large cross-track array is required to sound ice in ice-sheet margins and fast-flowing glaciers with very rough surfaces. Radar sounding of ice in these areas is extremely challenging because of surface clutter - off-vertical backscattered signals produced by the rough ice surface - and this can mask weak echoes from the ice bed. The cross-track array is required to reduce this surface clutter to measure ice thickness and characterize conditions at the ice bed, to include whether or not ice is frozen to the bed or sliding on a film of water. The presence of water lubricates the ice bed and that results in ice moving much faster. The ATMR is used to calibrate radars and measure ice loss to estimate conditions at the bed. Existing models can simulate long-term and large-scale evolution of ice sheets, but they are incapable of simulating and predicting short-term and rapid fluctuations observed with satellite sensors. This is mainly because the physics of the underlying processes causing short-term fluctuations are poorly understood and represented in these models. Also the lack of critical information on boundary conditions at the required resolution has been a serious impediment to developing next-generation ice sheet models for simulating observed changes and predicting future response in a warming climate. Bed topography, estimated from ice thickness and surface elevation measurements, and basal conditions are required to predict the response of polar ice sheets in a warming climate using improved ice-sheet models currently in development. Modeling experiments or simulations will be performed to determine the optimum resolution required to characterize fast flowing glaciers and margins. The instrumentation will be designed to meet these requirements. Additionally, the ultrawideband radar will facilitate the process of selecting optimum site for deep core drilling by enabling fine-resolution imaging of the ice-bed interface and mapping internal layers from the surface to the bed, so the choice of ice core drill sites will be more precisely determined. The intellectual merit of this MRI project is the development and deployment of new ultra-wideband radar technology that will contribute to our understanding of key ice sheet processes in rapidly changing outlet glacier regions, ensure successful site selection for a deep-ice core with a climate record of more than a million years, and enable successful mapping of hydrological networks within and under the ice. The broader impacts of this project involve: application of the developed technology to other geophysical studies, including measurements over sea ice and permafrost and measurements of soil moisture, vegetation, and snow thickness over land; involvement of undergraduate and graduate students; partnerships with industry; and three international collaborations. The project will contribute significantly to the training of next generation of scientists by integrating graduate and undergraduate students with the technology and instrumentation development, field observations, and scientific analysis. Broad international partnerships provide unique opportunities for U.S. faculty, staff and students to participate in truly globalized research. This project also includes an industry partnership with Google Inc., which is providing matching support for an airborne camera system and student training in the use of the camera. Images collected along with the corresponding radar results of ice-bed topography will be made available to the public through Google Earth and Google Maps.
Title | Project start | End date | Organisation | Department | Project study region |
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79NG-EC - MACS@NG - HTRES | 19.07.2021 | 14.08.2021 | Alfred-Wegener-Institut (AWI) | Greenland Ice Sheet | |
FACE-IT: The future of Arctic coastal ecosystems – Identifying transitions in fjord systems and adjacent coastal areas | 01.11.2020 | 31.10.2024 | University of Bremen | University of Bremen, department | Arctic (entire region) |
Greenland Climate Network | 01.01.2010 | 31.12.2029 | Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) | Greenland Ice Sheet | |
Unravelling the response time scales of Greenland's most critical outlet glacier | 21.04.2020 | 26.05.2020 | Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) | Greenland Ice Sheet | |
Ice-dammed lakes - Evaluation of monitoring methods | 15.01.2020 | 31.12.2020 | Asiaq Greenland Survey | Hydrology, Climate and Environment | Greenland, South-West |
Collaborative Research: Using seismic tremor to constrain seasonal variations in subglacial hydrology at the bed of the Greenland ice sheet | 01.01.2019 | 31.12.2021 | Boston College | Boston College, dept. | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Using seismic tremor to constrain seasonal variations in subglacial hydrology at the bed of the Greenland ice sheet | 01.01.2019 | 31.12.2021 | Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute | Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
A Northern Hemisphere Holocene Paleoatmospheric Record of Ethane and Acetylene from the GISP2 Ice Core | 01.01.2019 | 31.12.2022 | University of California | University of California, Irvine, dept. | |
Collaborative Research: 800-Year Trends in Anthropogenic and Marine Biogenic Sources of Arctic Sulfate Aerosol | 01.01.2019 | 31.12.2022 | South Dakota State University | South Dakota State University, Dept. | |
Chemistry of reactive gases in the Arctic sea ice and atmosphere | 01.01.2019 | 31.12.2021 | University of Colorado Boulder | University of Colorado Boulder, Department | |
Collaborative Research: 800-Year Trends in Anthropogenic and Marine Biogenic Sources of Arctic Sulfate Aerosol | 01.01.2019 | 31.12.2022 | University of Washington | School of Oceanography | |
RAPID: Ocean Forcing for Ice Sheet Models for the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report | 01.01.2019 | 31.12.2020 | University of California | University of California, San Diego, Department | |
Dating of the Little Ice Age | 01.01.2018 | 31.12.2020 | Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) | Greenland, North-West | |
AirMiMic - Fieldwork | 20.07.2019 | 31.07.2019 | Aarhus University (AU) | Department of Environmental Science | Greenland, South-East |
Representing surface meltwater runoff in Greenland ice sheet models | 01.01.2019 | 31.12.2020 | Brown University | Brown University, dept. | Greenland, North-West |
Carbonyl sulfide measurements in the GISP2D ice core from Summit, Greenland | 01.01.2019 | 31.12.2022 | University of California | University of California, Irvine, dept. | |
A beauty for the eye, but what shapes icebergs in Greenland? | 01.05.2019 | 01.09.2020 | Greenland Institute of Natural Resources (GINR) | Greenland Climate Research Centre | Greenland, Mid-West |
CryoVEx-2019 summer campaign | 08.08.2019 | 15.08.2019 | Technical University of Denmark (DTU) | DTU Space | Greenland, North-East |
EastGRIP | 01.04.2015 | 31.12.2020 | University of Copenhagen | Physics of Ice, Climate and Earth | Greenland, North-East |
Greenland GNSS Network - GNET | 01.08.2019 | 31.08.2019 | Technical University of Denmark (DTU) | DTU Space | Greenland, North-East |
Parameterizing sub-grid Arctic snow-on-sea-ice processes in Earth System Models using MOSAiC field observations and realistic-resolution process models | 01.01.2018 | 31.12.2021 | Colorado State University | Colorado State University, dept | Arctic (entire region) |
Q19 | 11.04.2019 | 25.04.2019 | Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) | Greenland, South-West | |
Airborne CryoSat and ICESat cross-calibration campaign | 21.03.2019 | 03.04.2019 | Technical University of Denmark (DTU) | DTU Space | Greenland, North-East |
Airborne campaign for future Copernicus polar satellite | 28.02.2019 | 12.03.2019 | Technical University of Denmark (DTU) | DTU Space | Svalbard |
DMI - Research, Monitoring and Infrastructure 2019-2020 | 01.08.2019 | 30.09.2019 | Danish Meteorological Institute (DMI) | Greenland, North-East | |
Programme for monitoring of the Greenland ice sheet | 04.01.2010 | 31.12.2027 | Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS) | Greenland Ice Sheet | |
BLACK and BLOOM - Microbial processes darken and accelerate the melting of the Greenland Ice Sheet | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2017 | Bristol University | Bristol University, dept. | Greenland, Mid-West |
East Greenland Ice-core Project | 01.01.2017 | 31.12.2021 | University of Copenhagen | University of Copenhagen, dept. | Greenland Ice Sheet |
Drainage efficiency of the Greenland supraglacial river network | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2018 | Brown University | Brown University, dept. | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Three-dimensional structure of Arctic tides and near-inertial oscillations, and their role in changing the Arctic Ocean and ice pack | 01.01.2017 | 31.12.2020 | Atmospheric and Environmental Research Inc (AER) | Atmospheric and Environmental Research Inc, dept. | |
Collaborative Research: Closing the Gaps in Climate Models' Surface Albedo Schemes of Processes Driving the Darkening of the Greenland Ice Sheet | 01.01.2017 | 31.12.2020 | City University of New York | City University of New York (CUNY), dept. | |
Collaborative Research: Investigating jamming in iceberg-choked fjords with field observations, laboratory experiments, and numerical models | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2018 | University of Alaska | University of Alaska, Southeast, dept. | |
Collaborative Research: Investigating jamming in iceberg-choked fjords with field observations, laboratory experiments, and numerical models | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2018 | Emory University | Emory University, dept. | |
Collaborative Research: Investigating jamming in iceberg-choked fjords with field observations, laboratory experiments, and numerical models | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2018 | University of California | University of California, Irvine, dept. | |
Collaborative research: Spatial and temporal variability of surface albedo and light absorbing chemical species in Greenland | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2015 | Duke University | Duke University, dept. | |
Collaborative Research: Understanding GrIS moulin hydrology and links to ice motion | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2019 | University of Arkansas | University of Arkansas, dept. | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Refreezing in the firn of the Greenland ice sheet: Spatiotemporal variability and implications for ice sheet mass balance | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2019 | City University of New York | City University of New York (CUNY), dept. | Greenland Ice Sheet |
Collaborative Research: Understanding GrIS moulin hydrology and links to ice motion | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2019 | University of South Florida | University of South Florida, dept. | Greenland Ice Sheet |
Collaborative Research: Visualization, analysis, and HPC modeling of subglacial hydrology from high-resolution 3D conduit scans acquired with a novel sensor | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2017 | University of South Florida | University of South Florida, dept. | |
Collaborative Research: The Greenland Firn Aquifer Impacts on Ice Sheet Hydrology: Characterizing Volume, Flow, and Discharge | 01.01.2014 | 31.12.2017 | University of Maryland | University of Maryland College Park, dept. | Greenland, Mid-East |
Collaborative Research: GreenTrACS: a Greenland Traverse for Accumulation and Climate Studies | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2017 | Boise State University | Boise State University, dept. | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Visualization, analysis, and HPC modeling of subglacial hydrology from high-resolution 3D conduit scans acquired with a novel sensor | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2017 | University of South Florida | University of South Florida, dept. | |
Collaborative Research: The Greenland Firn Aquifer Impacts on Ice Sheet Hydrology: Characterizing Volume, Flow, and Discharge | 01.01.2014 | 31.12.2017 | University of Utah | University of Utah, dept. | Greenland, Mid-East |
Collaborative Research: Investigating the Influence of Sea-surface Variability on Ice Sheet Mass Balance and Outlet Glacier Behavior using Records from Disko Bugt, West Greenland | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2015 | Wheaton College | Wheaton College, dept. | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Investigating the Influence of Sea-surface Variability on Ice Sheet Mass Balance and Outlet Glacier Behavior using Records from Disko Bugt, West Greenland | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2015 | Clark University | Clark University, dept. | Greenland, Mid-West |
An initial investigation of the Greenland perennial firn aquifer | 01.01.2013 | 31.12.2015 | University of Utah | University of Utah, dept. | Greenland Ice Sheet |
Quantifying Firn Compaction and its Implications for Altimetry-based Mass Balance Estimates of the Greenland Ice Sheet | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2018 | National Aeronautical and Space Administration | National Aeronautical and Space Administration, Department | Greenland Ice Sheet |
Continued Core Atmospheric and Snow Measurements at the Summit, Greenland Environmental Observatory | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2021 | National Aeronautical and Space Administration | National Aeronautical and Space Administration, Department | Greenland Ice Sheet |
GOne with the Wind ON-Arctic (GOWON-Arctic) | 01.01.2013 | 31.12.2015 | National Aeronautical and Space Administration | National Aeronautical and Space Administration, Department | |
Long term monitoring of Greenland's under ice environment | 01.01.2013 | 31.12.2014 | National Aeronautical and Space Administration | National Aeronautical and Space Administration, Department | Greenland Ice Sheet |
ARI: Seasonal Fluxes across Submarine Ice Sheet Margins: A Pilot Study in West Greenland | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2013 | Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute | Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Quantifying Heat/Mass Structure and Fluxes Through the Full Thickness of Greenland's Percolation Zone | 01.01.2017 | 31.12.2021 | University of Wyoming | University of Wyoming, Department | Greenland Ice Sheet |
Collaborative Research: Quantifying Heat/Mass Structure and Fluxes Through the Full Thickness of Greenland's Percolation Zone | 01.01.2017 | 31.12.2020 | University of Montana | University of Montana, Department | Greenland Ice Sheet |
Glacier Front Drifters Design Concept | 01.01.2013 | 31.12.2015 | National Aeronautical and Space Administration | National Aeronautical and Space Administration, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Visualization, analysis, and HPC modeling of subglacial hydrology from high-resolution 3D conduit scans acquired with a novel sensor | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2017 | Penn State University | Penn State University, Department | |
Collaborative Research: Refreezing in the firn of the Greenland ice sheet: Spatiotemporal variability and implications for ice sheet mass balance | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2020 | Rutgers University New Brunswick | Rutgers University New Brunswick, Department | Greenland Ice Sheet |
RAPID: Impact of Large Scale Greenland Ice Sheet Melting on Glacier Hydrology and Meltwater Geochemistry | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2013 | Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute | Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: In Situ Borehole Measurements To Partition The Velocity Of The Greenland Ice Sheet Into Ice Deformation And Basal Sliding Components | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2017 | University of Wyoming | University of Wyoming, Department | Greenland Ice Sheet |
Collaborative Research: In Situ Borehole Measurements To Partition The Velocity Of The Greenland Ice Sheet Into Ice Deformation And Basal Sliding Components | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2017 | University of Montana | University of Montana, Department | Greenland Ice Sheet |
Collaborative Research: Investigating the Influence of Sea-surface Variability on Ice Sheet Mass Balance and Outlet Glacier Behavior using Records from Disko Bugt, West Greenland | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2015 | Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute | Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
From the Ice Sheet to the Sea: An Interdisciplinary Study of the Impact of Extreme Melt on Ocean Stratification and Productivity near West Greenland | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2017 | University of Georgia | University of Georgia, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Holistic Ice-Ocean-Climate Interactions Campaign on Store Glacier and Ikeresak Fjord | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2013 | Ohio State University | Ohio State University, Byrd Polar Research Center | Greenland, Mid-West |
GROVER: Greenland Rover for Cryospheric Research | 01.01.2013 | 31.12.2016 | University of Colorado Boulder | University of Colorado Boulder, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Comprehensive Assessment of Ice Sheet Contributions to Sea Level Based on Integrated Remote Sensing Observations | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2013 | University of Colorado Boulder | University of Colorado Boulder, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Towards an Operational System for Estimating Greenland Ice Sheet Thickness Change from Altimetry | 01.01.2014 | 31.12.2020 | Ohio State University | Ohio State University, Byrd Polar Research Center | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: GreenTrACS: a Greenland Traverse for Accumulation and Climate Studies | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2017 | Dartmouth College | Dartmouth College, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Dynamic Observations of the Evolution of Firn | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2019 | Dartmouth College | Dartmouth College, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Understanding the controls on spatial and temporal variability in ice discharge using a Greenland-wide ice sheet model | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2019 | University of Alaska | University of Alaska Fairbanks, Department | |
Collaborative Research: Understanding the controls on spatial and temporal variability in ice discharge using a Greenland-wide ice sheet model | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2019 | University of Texas at Austin | University of Texas at Austin, Department | |
Predictability of Open Water in the Chukchi/Beaufort Seas and Other Regions | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2019 | University of Colorado Boulder | University of Colorado Boulder, Department | |
Collaborative Research: Refreezing in the firn of the Greenland ice sheet: Spatiotemporal variability and implications for ice sheet mass balance | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2019 | University of Alaska | University of Alaska Fairbanks, Department | Greenland Ice Sheet |
Inter-Hemispheric Climate Teleconnections in response to Massive Iceberg Discharge in the North Atlantic | 01.01.2017 | 31.12.2020 | Oregon State University | Oregon State University, College of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences | |
Collaborative Research: Three-dimensional structure of Arctic tides and near-inertial oscillations, and their role in changing the Arctic Ocean and ice pack | 01.01.2017 | 31.12.2020 | University of Texas at Austin | University of Texas at Austin, Department | |
Collaborative Research: Three-dimensional structure of Arctic tides and near-inertial oscillations, and their role in changing the Arctic Ocean and ice pack | 01.01.2017 | 31.12.2020 | Earth & Space Research | Earth & Space Research, Department | |
Collaborative Research: Three-dimensional structure of Arctic tides and near-inertial oscillations, and their role in changing the Arctic Ocean and ice pack | 01.01.2017 | 31.12.2020 | University of Alaska | University of Alaska Fairbanks, Department | |
Collaborative Research: Closing the Gaps in Climate Models' Surface Albedo Schemes of Processes Driving the Darkening of the Greenland Ice Sheet | 01.01.2017 | 31.12.2020 | University of Michigan | University of Michigan, Department | |
Collaborative Research: Sonic Logging the NEEM Corehole, Greenland | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2013 | University of Alaska | University of Alaska Fairbanks, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
CAREER: Linking cryospheric processes across scales to model non-linear albedo feedback | 01.01.2013 | 31.12.2018 | University of Michigan | University of Michigan, Department | |
Collaborative Research: Response of the Northwest Greenland Cryosphere to Holocene Climate Change | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2014 | Northwestern University | Northwestern University, Department | Greenland, North-West |
Physical controls on ocean-terminating glacier variability in Central West Greenland | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2015 | University of Texas at Austin | University of Texas at Austin, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: A 1500m Ice Core from South Pole | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2017 | University of California | University of California, Irvine, dept. | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: A 1500m Ice Core from South Pole | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2017 | University of New Hampshire | University of New Hampshire, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Response of the Northwest Greenland Cryosphere to Holocene Climate Change | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2014 | Dartmouth College | Dartmouth College, Department | Greenland, North-West |
Collaborative Research: A 1500m Ice Core from South Pole | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2017 | University of Washington | School of Oceanography | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Investigating the Influence of Sea-surface Variability on Ice Sheet Mass Balance and Outlet Glacier Behavior using Records from Disko Bugt, West Greenland | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2015 | University of Washington | School of Oceanography | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Sonic Logging the NEEM Corehole, Greenland | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2013 | University of Washington | School of Oceanography | Greenland, Mid-West |
Inland Migration of Crevasses on the Greenland Ice Sheet | 01.01.2013 | 31.12.2014 | University of Maine | University of Maine, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: GreenTrACS: a Greenland Traverse for Accumulation and Climate Studies | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2017 | University of Maine | University of Maine, Department | Greenland, Mid-West |
Collaborative Research: Detecting Glacier Calving Events from Ocean Waves and Underwater Acoustics | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2017 | University of Washington | School of Oceanography | |
Collaborative Research: Detecting Glacier Calving Events from Ocean Waves and Underwater Acoustics | 01.01.2015 | 31.12.2017 | University of California | University of California, San Diego, Department | |
Proteomic evidence of microbial weathering processes beneath the Greenland Ice Sheet | 01.01.2016 | 31.12.2017 | University of Washington | School of Oceanography | |
Collaborative Research: Detecting Glacier Calving Events from Ocean Waves and Underwater Acoustics | 01.01.2017 | 31.12.2018 | University of California | University of California, San Diego, Department | |
Collaborative Research: Response of the Northwest Greenland Cryosphere to Holocene Climate Change | 01.01.2012 | 31.12.2014 | University of Maine | University of Maine, Department | Greenland, North-West |