Kongsvegen: INitiation of a Glacier Surge (KINGSurge)

Kongsvegen is a surge-type glacier in Svalbard that last surged in 1948. Ongoing GPS measurements have indicated that the glacier has started to accelerate, and another surge may be imminent. The early detection of an incipient surge is exceptionally rare, and we have a short window of opportunity to carry out a pilot study for testing new instruments and measuring key processes during the critical transition from quiescence to full surge. The project primarily consists of one field campaign in Spring 2018, with subsequent data collection supported by partnering projects. We will measure bed topography and thermal structure of the glacier using ground-penetrating radar. These data will help determine an optimal location to drill a borehole through the glacier to the bed and install instruments to measure ice temperature, strain rate, and water pressure at the bed. We will install new GPS units on the glacier surface to measure precise vertical and horizontal motion of the glacier, and seismometers in the ice to measure seismicity associated with changes in ice dynamics, hydrology, and crevassing. Glacier-wide velocity fields will be monitored using remote sensing data. These field and remote sensing measurements will be used to test hypotheses of a new unifying theory of glacier surging that is capable of explaining all dynamic glacier instabilities in a single framework. We will integrate the instruments installed on the glacier with prototype telemetry instruments that communicate with each other and can send data back to Longyearbyen over the cellular network, which can be reached from the upper part of Kongsvegen. This will establish a surge "early warning" system, with data that can be shared with relevant authorities in real-time. This will assist with transportation and research planning in Ny-Ålesund when Kongsvegen begins to surge, at which point the glacier surface will become heavily crevassed and unsafe for travel.