Seismic studies of frozen ground in Arctic areas

Seismiv surveys have been applied to investigate the structure of frozen ground, to identify and contour natural and man-caused unfrozen layers in permafrost (taliks), to constrain the position of the permafrost table in the Arctic inner shelf, and to study the related coastal stability. They are the classic methods common in shallow seismic exploration and new techniques specially designed at the Institute of Earth's Cryosphere (Tyumen') for different wave components. The joint use of compressional and shear waves provides a higher-quality interpretation of seismic data in permafrost applications. In the case of a single wave component, shear waves are advantageous over P waves. (C) 2010, IGM, Siberian Branch of the RAS. Published by Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.