The Transantarctic Mountains Northern Network (TAMNNET): Deployment and Performance of a Seismic Array in Antarctica

Abstract

Over the past ∼17 years, significant technological developments have advanced seismic investigations of the polar regions. In Antarctica, studies using data from a number of large-scale deployments, such as the Transantarctic Mountains Seismic Experiment (TAMSEIS), the Gamburtsev Antarctic Mountains Seismic Experiment (GAMSEIS), and the Polar Earth Observing Network (POLENET), have greatly improved our knowledge of the continent’s tectonic evolution (Fig. 1). However, these studies have also illustrated that there is still a great deal more to be learned. Figure 1. (a) Subglacial bedrock topography from the BEDMAP2 model (Fretwell et al. , 2013). Shapes indicate stations from various seismic deployments across the continent (black stars, Antarctic Network of Unattended Broadband Seismometers [ANUBIS]; gray triangles, Transantarctic Mountains Seismic Experiment [TAMSEIS]; gray squares, Gamburtsev Antarctic Mountains Seismic Experiment [GAMSEIS]; gray circles, Polar Earth Observing Network [POLENET]; white circles and squares, Transantarctic Mountains Northern Network [TAMNNET]). The polygon highlights the region shown in (b). Key geographic features are labeled: TAMs, Transantarctic Mountains; WSB, Wilkes subglacial basin; VL, Victoria Land; RI, Ross Island; RSE, Ross Sea embayment; WARS, West Antarctic rift system; GSM, Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains; DML, Dronning Maud Land; AP, Antarctic Peninsula; and EWM, Ellsworth–Whitmore Mountains. (b) Regional map focused on the TAMNNET deployment, with station names indicated. Additional geographic features not labeled in (a) include TR, Terror Rift; TNB, Terra Nova Bay; and MM, Mt. Melbourne. Stations denoted by circles are those powered with absorbed glass mat (AGM) batteries and two lampshade-style solar panel systems, whereas stations denoted by squares have one lampshade-style solar panel, one AGM battery, and 15 lithium battery packs. See text for further details. One of the goals of TAMSEIS was to investigate the origin of the Transantarctic Mountains (TAMs), the transcontinental mountain range that separates East and West Antarctica (Fig. 1; Robinson and Splettstoesser, 1986). The TAMs lack any evidence for a …