Reducing Spatial Uncertainty: Stratigraphy of Antarctic Firn Resolved by High-Resolution Penetrometry

Abstract

Precise measurements of snow structural parameters are crucial to understand snow stratigraphy and its formation by deposition and metamorphism. However, most snow measurements are limited in spatial and temporal resolution, and an important limiting factor is often the time needed to make measurements. We demonstrate the potential of a high-resolution penetrometer by the stratigraphy of a 25 m long and 1.1 m deep transect through the snow and firn at Kohnen Station, Antarctica. We used a statistical model that extracts three major snow structural parameters, density (rho), correlation length (lex) and specific surface area (SSA). We could show using independent measurements from the site that the statistical model is indeed sufficient. The two-dimensional plots reveal the depositional and metamorphic events clearly. Based on these data, we are able to make a much more complete interpretation of the stratigraphic evolution at Kohnen Station. SnowMicroPen derived density of a 1.10 m deep and 25 m long snow and firn transect at Kohnen Station, Antarctica, measured in December 2012