Groundwater recharge is difficult to measure and the role of macropores is not well-understood. We are exploring use of geophysical techniques to map infiltration in natural settings at the NSF-funded Critical Zone Observatories (CZOs) and Critical Zone Network Philadelphia Urban site.
See also the Groundwater-surface water tab for other hydrogeophysical studies
RECENT FUNDING: National Science Foundation, Urban Critical Zone processes along the Piedmont-Coastal Plain transition. 2020-2025
PAST FUNDING: We received subcontracts and seed grants from Penn State University to work on their National Science Foundation-funded CZO. We also were granted access to the Christiana River CZO to conduct studies on their site.
 Resistivity survey in the rain |
Soil infiltrometer |
 Bedrock fractures |
 GPR survey |
 Trench excavation |
 Dye trace in soil |
PUBLICATION
Nyquist, J. E., Toran, L., Pitman, L., Guo, L., & Lin, H. (2018). Testing the fill-and-spill model of subsurface lateral flow using ground-penetrating radar and dye tracing. Vadose Zone Journal, 17(1). pdf
THESES/PRESENTATIONS
Milinic, B. 2022. Evaluation of bedrock depth and soil infiltration along Pennypack Creek using electrical resistivity tomography and soil moisture loggers. Unpublished master’s thesis, Temple University., 113 pp.
Pitman, L. 2014. Ground-penetrating radar images of a dye tracer test within the unsaturated zone at the Susquehanna-Shale Hills CZO. Unpublished master’s thesis, Temple University, 182 pp.
Schlosser, K. 2017. Monitoring infiltration from natural storms using time-lapse electrical resistivity tomography.
Pitman, L., Nyquist, J.E., Toran, L., Lin, H., 2014. Ground-penetrating radar images hydrogeological processes within the unsaturated zone at the Susquehanna-Shale Hills CZO. 49th Annual Meeting of the Northeastern Section of the Geological Society of America, March 23-25, Lancaster, PA.
Schlosser, K., Toran, L., Nyquist, J., and Sawyer, A. 2013. A geophysical field investigation of infiltration during rain events in the riparian zone. Geological Society of American Annual Meeting, Denver, CO, October 27-30. Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 45, p 263.