Project: Seismic sensing of subglacial to proglacial marginal sediment flux

My research objectives: Bedload transport in subglacial rivers and its contribution to glacial erosion is only partly understood. Access to measure this process is restricted, but seismic monitoring allows to identify and quantify coarse particle movement in the stream. We measure seismic signal in front of the glacier terminus as well as in boreholes in the ice and invert the signal to obtain bedload transport rates. We compare this rate along different glaciers and years and relate the results to other erosion processes.

Last News (February 2024): 

After a the end of my field season in October 2023, the winter term was determined to inspect the collected data. My four seismic stations at my two glaciers in Switzerland gave me a lot to work on. The seismic signal is processed in a fluvial inversion model, which needed quite some preparation. I analyzed an active seismic experiment which I conducted in the summer, to determine properties of wave propagation velocities on my field sites. To obtain robust estimations, these properties were also determined using machine learning techniques, and later compared. In December, my main focus was to write down my current results in a first year report. Soon, we will have a commission on this.
For now, I am working on the application of my Fluvial Inversion Model to get realistic estimates of the bedload transport happening in my subglacial rivers.
Other than that, I am now starting to prepare a big project in the field this summer. I spent one week at IPGP in Paris, to work together on the simulation of seismic signals received by a fiber optics cable employed on a glacier. This is part of the preparation to identify subglacial hydrological structures using seismic methods this summer.