Geotechnical survey carried out on the top plateau of Marambio Island

The present runway frequently shows operative problems due to its surface conditions as a result of the soil's nature. The aim of the study is to know the geotechnical properties of the runway and their spatial and temporal variations in order to propose an improved model.

All of the region lies in the zone of continuous permafrost, where the top soil layers are exposed to multiple freeze/thaw cycles, which modify their mechanical properties. Thus the plateau offers particular technical difficulties, which do not allow the application of construction methods developed for temperate regions. During the field work frozen and unfrozen soil samples were collected, topographic surveys and measurements were carried out to determine the thermal regime and mechanical properties of the active layer and permafrost table.