Tracking the Subsurface Signal of Decadal Climate Warming to Quantify Vertical Groundwater Flow Rates

V.F. Bense*, B.L. Kurylyk

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

26 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Sustained ground surface warming on a decadal time scale leads to an inversion of thermal gradients in the upper tens of meters. The magnitude and direction of vertical groundwater flow should influence the propagation of this warming signal, but direct field observations of this phenomenon are rare. Comparison of temperature-depth profiles in boreholes in the Veluwe area, Netherlands, collected in 1978-1982 and 2016 provided such direct measurement. We used these repeated profiles to track the downward propagation rate of the depth at which the thermal gradient is zero. Numerical modeling of the migration of this thermal gradient "inflection point" yielded estimates of downward groundwater flow rates (0-0.24 m a-1) that generally concurred with known hydrogeological conditions in the area. We conclude that analysis of inflection point depths in temperature-depth profiles impacted by surface warming provides a largely untapped opportunity to inform sustainable groundwater management plans that rely on accurate estimates of long-term vertical groundwater fluxes.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)12244-12253
JournalGeophysical Research Letters
Volume44
Issue number24
Early online date27 Dec 2017
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 28 Dec 2017

Keywords

  • Climate warming
  • Groundwater tracer
  • Heat flow
  • Hydrogeology

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Tracking the Subsurface Signal of Decadal Climate Warming to Quantify Vertical Groundwater Flow Rates'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this