Barbara Bieta

Abstract

The article reports the results of fieldwork carried out on the peak of Babia Gora to verify a hypothesis regarding the existence of permafrost at this location. The climate and geomorphological evolution of this area suggest that both past and current frost processes play an important role here. Furthermore, not far from this massif – in the Tatra Mts – permafrost was detected at an altitude of ca. 2000 m a.s.l., in an area where mean annual air temperature (MAAT) drops to minus 0.8°C. The MAAT at the summit of Babia Gora is likewise below 0°C. Given that long-term freezing of the massif in the glacial period reached down to considerable depths, the climatic evolution of the massif indicates that permafrost could have lasted through to the present time. In the study area three resistivity profiles were made using the resistivity imaging method. Two of these were 300 m long and one 400 m. The depth of interpretation extends to approx. 90 m below the ground surface in the last case. While the results of the geophysical surveys do not confirm the presence of permafrost in the study area unambiguously, its presence may not be precluded in certain places in the shallow subsurface layer. The permafrost originating in older geological periods and located at greater depth was probably exposed to relatively rapid degradation, given the geological structure of Babia Góra allowing for deep water drainage. Resistivity models shows the geological structure of the research area close to the summit of Babia Góra, but do not resolve the issue of the existence of modern or fossil permafrost. The temperature of the water in springs located close to the summit is almost constant, though, and does not exceed 1°C. This shows that water circulation is a relatively deep one, and the temperature within the massif cannot therefore be higher than this. The existence of permafrost is not therefore precluded, and this might be possible in the form of the cryotic state. The measurements made present only the first approach to the hypothesis regarding the possible existence of permafrost on Babia Góra, and further research applying other, complementary methods may still change views on this subject.

Keywords: permafrost, Babia Góra, inwersyjne obrazowanie oporności

Citation

APA: Dobiński, W., Glazer, M., Bieta, B., & Mendecki, M. (2016). Poszukiwanie wieloletniej zmarzliny i budowa geologiczna Babiej Góry w świetle wyników obrazowania elektrooporowego. Przegląd Geograficzny, 88(1), 31-51. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2016.1.2
MLA: Dobiński, Wojciech, et al. "Poszukiwanie wieloletniej zmarzliny i budowa geologiczna Babiej Góry w świetle wyników obrazowania elektrooporowego". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 88, no. 1, 2016, pp. 31-51. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2016.1.2
Chicago: Dobiński, Wojciech, Glazer, Michał, Bieta, Barbara, and Mendecki, Maciej J.. "Poszukiwanie wieloletniej zmarzliny i budowa geologiczna Babiej Góry w świetle wyników obrazowania elektrooporowego". Przegląd Geograficzny 88, no. 1 (2016): 31-51. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2016.1.2
Harvard: Dobiński, W., Glazer, M., Bieta, B., & Mendecki, M. 2016. "Poszukiwanie wieloletniej zmarzliny i budowa geologiczna Babiej Góry w świetle wyników obrazowania elektrooporowego". Przegląd Geograficzny, vol. 88, no. 1, pp. 31-51. https://doi.org/10.7163/PrzG.2016.1.2