The first ever application of electromagnetic sounding for mapping the submarine permafrost table on the Laptev Sea shelf

Abstract

The inconsistency between the position of the submarine permafrost table in the East Arctic seas revealed by simulation and anomalies in the distribution of dissolved methane associated with ascending torchlike ejections of bubbling methane made it necessary to develop a representative geophysical express method, which allows the position of the submarine permafrost table to be determined. The method is based on sounding of the generated primary electromagnetic field in the near zone of the medium and measurement of the induced secondary EM field. The reliability of the method is confirmed by core drilling in the Laptev Sea.