Long‐Term Infrasonic Monitoring of Land and Marine‐Terminating Glaciers in Greenland

Abstract

AbstractA period of 18 years of infrasonic recordings was analyzed from a microbarometer array (I18DK) in northwestern Greenland, near Qaanaaq. A huge number of infrasonic detections, over 700,000, have been made in I18DKs soundscape during the Arctic summers. Simultaneously identified were both calving events from marine‐terminating glaciers and discharge related acoustics from a land‐terminating glacier. This infrasonic activity is correlated to sea‐surface and atmospheric temperature, respectively. Inter‐yearly to daily variations were retrieved showing a strong variability in infrasonic detection rates and hence glacier activity. The highest number of infrasonic detections were found in recent years from the land‐terminating glacier. The latter is supported by actual discharge measurements and partly by a discharge model. It is concluded that monitoring infrasound from glaciers can complement other techniques to remotely and passively get insights into glacier dynamics with high temporal and spatial resolution.