Research

This past summer, from July 29 to August 8, 2024, the Near Surface Geophysics Lab had the opportunity to join an ambitious field research project in Utqiagvik, Alaska. We teamed up with researchers from Penn State University, Dr. Ming Xiao and his master’s student Matt Hallissey, to investigate the rapid thawing of Arctic permafrost—an issue that’s becoming increasingly urgent as global temperatures rise. We spent ten days in the field, working to better understand the impacts of permafrost degradation on the environment and infrastructure in this vulnerable region. Permafrost is frozen ground that has been stable for thousands of years….