Fiber-Optic Airplane Seismology on the Northeast Greenland Ice Stream

Abstract We present distributed fiber-optic sensing data from an airplane landing near the EastGRIP ice core drilling site on Northeast Greenland Ice Stream. The recordings of exceptional clarity contain at least 15 easily visible wave propagation modes corresponding to various Rayleigh, pseudoacoustic, and leaky waves. In frequency range 8 55 Hz, seven can be identified unambiguously. Based a priori firn model that matches P-wave dispersion fundamental Rayleigh mode, Backus–Gilbert inversion yields S-wavespeed with resolution lengths as low few meters uncertainties in only 10 m/s. An empirical scaling S wavespeed density leads depth estimate firn–ice transition between 65 71 m, agreement direct measurements. This work underlines potential combined strong unconventional seismic sources studies properties, which are critical ingredients climatology, well sheet dynamics mass balance calculations.