A Unique Opportunity for In-Situ Measurement of Seasonally-Varying Firn Densification at Summit, Greenland

They will make detailed measurements of the temporal and spatial variations of firn compaction to advance knowledge and understanding of ice deformation and across different fields, including remote sensing, snow morphology, and paleoclimatology. They will make detailed measurements through two winter and three summer seasons at Summit Greenland using the concept of Borehole Optical Stratigraphy, which will use a borehole camera to record details of the wall.

These details can be tracked over time to determine vertical motion and strain, which in the shallow depth is dominated by firn compaction. Quantitative understanding of firn compaction is important for remote-sensing mass-balance studies, which seek to measure and interpret the changing height of the ice sheet; the surface can rise due to snow accumulation, and fall due to ice flow and increased densification rates. Quantitative knowledge of all three processes is essential.