Georadar (interferometric radar)

Judging the stability of a rock wall or a glacier from a distance is not an easy task. The interferometric radar is ideally suited to perform this task from a safe distance. It provides safe measurements of rock and ice deformation across large areas and high accuracy.

⇒ Advantages
⇒ Applications
⇒ Specifications
⇒ Additional technologies

Advantages

  • Monitor glaciers and rock walls over large areas
  • Detect fast movements and trigger alarms
  • Detect slow and long-term deformation
  • Early warning for rock and ice fall, including volume estimation
  • Range of up to 4km, areal coverage of more than 5 km²
  • Detect sub-mm deformation
  • Measure 2-D deformation vectors
  • Suitable for alpine environments, runs on autonomous power supply
  • Installed within few hours, ideal for temporary operations
  • 24/7 data access on a password protected website

Applications

The georadar is designed to monitor the stability of rock walls and glaciers. It detects even very small deformations (less than 1 mm) from safe distances of up to 4 km. On the one hand, it can detect fast movements and be programmed to automatically sound an alarm, for instance to monitor a cleanup after a rockfall event. On the other hand, it can monitor long-term deformation by repeatedly surveying a target area and comparing the measurements over the course of several months or years. Measurements offer high temporal and spatial resolutions and can be used to predict failures and estimate volumes.

Customer projects:

Specifications

  • Range up to 4km
  • Detect sub-mm deformation
  • Spatial resolution of 1mrad, i.e. 4m pixel width at a distance of 1 km
  • Suitable for alpine environments, autonomous power supply
  • Measure 2-D deformation vectors

Additional technologies

These technologies are often combined with the georadar:

Discover more technologies!