An L-Band Radar System for Ice Sheet Measurements

A surface-based L-band radar sounding system was developed to measure ice sheet thickness, basal conditions, and ice-shelf melt rate. The radar system operates in a pulse-chirped mode with a peak transmit power of 4 kW through eight channels of 500 W each. The system is equipped with an array of high gain Yagi antennas to achieve the required sensitivity. We have deployed the radar to the East Greenland Ice-Core Project (EGRIP) site in Greenland for field tests during the 2019 Summer field season. We have successfully demonstrated, for the first time, radar sounding of kilometers-thick polar ice sheet at L-band. In this paper, we will present the radar system design, field operation, as well as field results.