HR: 16:15h
AN: H34D-02    [Abstracts]
TI: Surface GPR time-lapse monitoring of hillslope processes
AU: * Cassiani, G
EM: giorgio.cassiani@unimib.it
AF: Universita' di Milano - Bicocca, Dipartimento di Scienze Geologiche e Geotecnologie, Piazza della Scienza, 4, Milan, I-20126 Italy
AU: Giustiniani, M
EM: michelagiu@yahoo.it
AF: Universita' di Trieste, Dipartimento di Ingegneria Civile, Sezione Georisorse e Ambiente, Via Valerio, 10, Trieste, I-34125 Italy
AU: Strobbia, C
EM: claudio.strobbia@eucentre.it
AF: European Centre for Training and Research in Earthquake Engineering, Via Ferrata, 1, Pavia, I-27100 Italy
AU: Fusi, N
EM: nicoletta.fusi@unimib.it
AF: Universita' di Milano - Bicocca, Dipartimento di Scienze Geologiche e Geotecnologie, Piazza della Scienza, 4, Milan, I-20126 Italy
AU: Crosta, G B
EM: giovannib.crosta@unimib.it
AF: Universita' di Milano - Bicocca, Dipartimento di Scienze Geologiche e Geotecnologie, Piazza della Scienza, 4, Milan, I-20126 Italy
AU: Frattini, P
EM: paolo.frattini@unimib.it
AF: Universita' di Milano - Bicocca, Dipartimento di Scienze Geologiche e Geotecnologie, Piazza della Scienza, 4, Milan, I-20126 Italy
AB: The hydrological dynamics along mountain slopes control many important phenomena, such as shallow landslide triggering and flood generation. The governing factors include: soil thickness, slope and bedrock morphology, rainfall pattern and subsurface groundwater conditions, both in vadose zone and under the water table. We present the results of a monitoring project currently undertaken on a large slope parcel in the Alpine region of Northern Italy. Both direct (piezometers, tensiometers, etc.) and indirect (geophysical) methods are being used to characterize slope and bedrock morphology and changes in soil moisture content. In this note, we focus on the use of ground-penetrating-radar (GPR) in surface to surface configuration. Recently, the use of multi and single offset GPR has been advocated for intermediate scale monitoring of moisture content changes in agricultural soils, e.g. in vineyards. We investigate the applicability of using similar techniques along hillslopes. The monitoring has been performed using a PulseEkko 100 radar system. The estimation of moisture content in the first couple of meters below the soil surface is based on the differential arrival time of direct waves through air and through the soil itself . In addition, information about the bedrock morphology can also be derived. However, care must be taken to identify complex wave propagation patterns in the data caused by waveguide phenomena in the soil layer and critical refraction from the soil-bedrock interface. Such energy pathways can complicate the interpretation, but also carry significant information about the site structure and hydrological dynamics.
DE: 1866 Soil moisture
DE: 1875 Unsaturated zone
SC: Hydrology [H]
MN: 2004 AGU Fall Meeting