Georesearch Forschungsgesellschaft

20/04/2026

Permafrost knowledge. Infrastructure resilience.

💡Our Interreg project FROST.INI (2025–2027) has a clear objective: strengthening resilience to the impacts and risks of permafrost degradation in the Austrian–Italian Alps. A key step towards this goal is the close integration of stakeholders — those who ultimately have to make decisions on the ground.

Last week, we attended a comprehensive stakeholder meeting in Cortina d’Ampezzo, bringing together experts and practitioners from tourism, infrastructure, business, and science. Following last year’s meeting in Kaprun, this marks the second major stakeholder exchange within the project.

The discussions focused on methodological approaches — from in situ monitoring and geophysical surveys to digital modelling — and how these tools can support more informed, forward-looking decisions. Building on this, initial project outcomes were presented, including new permafrost boreholes at Großglockner as well as upgrades to key monitoring infrastructure at Grawand and Kitzsteinhorn.

An especially forward-looking topic was the active preservation of permafrost using cooling systems — as already implemented at Tofana within the “Rescue Permafrost” initiative. Approaches like this may become increasingly relevant at high-alpine infrastructure sites in the future.

👉 One thing is clear: Understanding permafrost is no longer a purely scientific task — it is becoming a prerequisite for safe and sustainable infrastructure in mountain regions.

Many thanks to Chiara Crippa from Institute for Earth Observation - Eurac Research and Antonio Bratus from OGS for organizing a wonderful stakeholer meeting.

12/03/2026

Validating UAV-based GPR measurements of glacier ice thickness 🎯🧊
Over the past year, we have been mapping glacier ice thickness across Austria using novel UAV-based Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR / SPH Engineering ). To validate these aerial measurements, we recently carried out an extensive ice drilling field campaign using our new Kovacs ice auger.
In total, we drilled 15 boreholes with a cumulative depth of more than 100 meters to compare the measured ice thickness with our GPR-derived results. The outcome is very encouraging: Across most locations, the drone-based GPR measurements show a very strong agreement with the borehole data, with deviations typically within about 10 % of the measured ice thickness.
At the same time, the field validation also revealed larger deviations in steep marginal zones of the glacier, where debris layers within the ice complicate the radar signal interpretation. These findings highlight important areas for further methodological refinement. We will continue this work with additional validation drillings in these challenging zones to better understand the radar response in steep, debris-rich glacier ice.
A big shoutout to the field team for carrying out the drilling campaign under demanding weather conditions. 🌬️

25/02/2026

From a summer storm to 2 million m³ of shifting debris. ⛈️

The is a striking example of how our changing climate reshapes high-alpine terrain. Our 2025 interim report provides fresh data on this 19-hectare active landslide system and its evolving dynamics.

Since 2010, nearly 1 million m³ of sediment have been mobilised — ~600,000 m³ deposited on the valley floor and ~400,000 m³ transported downstream by the Obersulzbach. 🌊

After a marked acceleration phase until 2021, displacement rates continue to slow in 2025 — but remain high:
🏎️ Lower cirque: ~22 m/year
🐌 Upper sector: ~7 m/year
❗Summer velocities are roughly 3x higher than winter rates! ☀️❄️

The long-term reveals a clear signal:
⛈️ more frequent heavy ,
🌡️ rising air temperatures,
📈 subsurface warming of ~+0.1 °C per year since 2016.

At the same time, the system’s behaviour is far from linear — not every intense event results in a major debris flow. Internal factors such as subsurface water pathways, availability, and degrading decisively control the dynamics.

Sattelkar is a striking example of climate-driven transformation in high-alpine terrain — differentiated, dynamic, and long-term in . Continuous, high-resolution remains essential to understand thresholds, anticipate sediment export, and support downstream management. 🛡️

A big thank you to our long-standing partners, especially the Hohe Tauern National Park, for making long-term, high-resolution monitoring in the Obersulzbachtal possible. 🤝🏔️

17/02/2026

How much is left on Upper Austria's largest ? 🏔️

On behalf of Österreichischer Alpenverein (Section "Austria"), we quantified the ice volume of Hallstätter Gletscher. For the Alpenverein - who manage the Seethaler and Simony Huts - knowing the exact remaining ice thickness isn’t just a matter of science; it’s a matter of safety and future trail planning as the ice disappears.

Using our -borne , we covered the entire 2.15 km² with 52 km of radar profiles.

Here’s what our study revealed:
Mean Ice Thickness: ~24 m
Max Ice Thickness: ~70 m
Total Remaining Volume: ~52 million m³ 🧊

The reality of the situation: While 52 million cubic meters sounds like a vast amount, it is roughly the same volume of ice that has vanished since glaciological mass balance measurements began at Hallstätter Gletscher in 2007. 📉

We are pleased to provide the precise data needed to help the Alpenverein adapt their hut and trail infrastructure to a changing landscape.

A huge thank you to Planai-Hochwurzen Bergbahnen for the incredible logistical support in the field - we might still be up there without you!

04/02/2026

🚠 Can a cable car help map snow distribution with centimetre precision?
Yes — and it could transform how we monitor snow in alpine regions. In our latest study, published in the Journal of Glaciology, first author Berin Dikic tested a lightweight laser scanning system mounted on a cable car at Hoher Sonnblick (Austria) to map snow thickness — efficiently, repeatably, and without RTK.

🛰️ High-resolution snow data from above
By combining laser scanning, motion sensors, and satellite positioning, the system produced high-resolution point clouds along a fixed transect. Across six winter runs, it captured daily to seasonal snow changes with centimetre-scale repeatability - even in feature-poor alpine terrain.

🏔️ What works, what doesn’t - and why it matters
The study highlights both potential and current limitations. But the conclusion is clear: cable car-based Lidar is a scalable, cost-effective tool for repeatable snow monitoring — supporting better data for avalanche safety, hydrology, and climate resilience.

📖 Many thanks to our collaborators Virtual Vehicle Research GmbH Technische Universität Graz University of Graz FH Joanneum University of Lisbon and the Journal of Glaciology for publishing this work.

Read the full study:

Lidar-based snow monitoring from aerial lifts: Gondola deployment in the Austrian Alps - Volume 72

02/02/2026

Mid-term Partner Meeting of the Interreg EU project FROST.INI – Salzburg

We had a great mid-term partner meeting of FROST.INI in Salzburg, with representatives from all partners - OGS, Institute for Earth Observation – Eurac Research, Land Salzburg, and Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano – Land Südtirol - coming together 🤝 to take stock of where we are and plan the next steps of the project.

All partners shared updates from their pilot sites 🏔️, highlighting the main activities carried out so far. The sites differ widely in terms of geomorphology, geology, climate, and exposition of high alpine infrastructure - posing challenges, but also offering a valuable opportunity to test and compare different monitoring approaches. Thanks to the diverse expertise within the partnership, these pilot sites have become key testbeds for applying and validating a broad range of methods to monitor permafrost degradation.

An important part of the discussion focused on exchanging and refining methodologies between the Italian and Austrian pilot sites, learning from each other’s expertise and strengthening cross-border collaboration.

Looking ahead to the next phase of activities and continued teamwork! 🚀

28/01/2026

A frosty throwback to the 16th DACH Permafrost Conference in Potsdam 🧊

Over 100 participants from 8 countries gathered at Seddiner See near Potsdam for the 16th edition of the DACH Permafrost Conference. These four days were full of enriching discussions and sharing ideas related to the latest . 🌍❄️

Congratulations to our colleague Maike Offer for winning the Poster Prize 🏆 for her poster, "Deciphering the Thermo-Hydro-Mechanical Rhythms of Permafrost Rockwalls: A Year of A-ERT Monitoring at the Kitzsteinhorn." Another highlight was Ingo Hartmeyer’s keynote on applied monitoring, risks, and early warning in permafrost environments.

From poster sessions and presentations to campfires, fieldwork photo shows, and walks on a frozen lake, it was a great, well-rounded event. Many thanks to the main organizer Jens Strauss, and his team for hosting us! We look forward to building on new ideas and connections! 🚀

19/01/2026

🏛️ Desert Rockfall Meets High-Tech Monitoring! 🏜️

We’re excited to share our latest open-access publication, just released in Earth Surface Dynamics:
'Safeguarding Cultural Heritage: Integrating laser scanning, InSAR, vibration monitoring and rockfall/granular flow runout modelling at the Temple of Hatshepsut, Egypt' — first-authored by Benjamin Jacobs from TU Munich.

👉 Full article: https://esurf.copernicus.org/articles/14/55/2026/

This study focuses on the majestic Temple of Hatshepsut in Egypt — and how modern geoscientific methods can help protect ancient heritage from natural hazards like rockfalls and granular flows.

📡 Using laser scanning, InSAR, seismic monitoring, and 3D runout modelling, we identified active slope deformation and simulated realistic hazard scenarios above the UNESCO site.

🛠️ By combining non-invasive field techniques and process-based modelling, the study demonstrates how geomorphology and remote sensing can guide risk-informed cultural heritage protection.

Huge thanks to our collaborators at the Egyptian-German project team and all contributing institutions! 🙌

18/12/2025

📆 As 2025 draws to a close, we’re taking a moment to look back on an incredibly packed year - one that truly had it all:

(1) Peat volume measurements using UAV-borne in beautiful Salzkammergut - a joint effort with the University of Salzburg and Österreichische Bundesforste.

(2) Drilling of the highest boreholes in Austria at Adlersruhe 3450 m, just next to Großglockner, Austria's highest peak as part of our FROST.INI research project with our Italian colleagues from EURAC and OSM.

(3) UAV hangar system for impact research at our Open-Air-Lab Kitzsteinhorn. A great collaboration with our friends from SpektakulAIR that we plan to further extend to other study sites.

(4) Measuring the ice thickness of Ödenwinkelkees with UAV-borne GPR, a challenging to monitor, very steep in its upper parts, largely debris-covered in the lower parts, and highly crevassed in several sections.

(5) monitoring in the highly active Sattelkar, Obersulzbach Valley - one of our long-term study sites in Nationalpark Hohe Tauern.

(6) High-resolution InSAR monitoring of subsidence in urban areas with our spin-off AUGMENTERRA.

🥂 Here’s to the breakthroughs, collaborations, and challenges that shaped 2025. We can’t wait to see what exciting research opportunities 2026 has in store for us!

04/12/2025

🔙 Flashback to a milestone in permafrost research in the Eastern Alps

From September 4–6, we supervised the drilling of two 20 m deep boreholes just north and south of the Erzherzog-Johann-Hut (3,450 m a.s.l.), Austria’s highest alpine hut and a key base for Großglockner ascents. These boreholes now mark the highest permafrost monitoring site in the Eastern Alps.

On October 8, high-precision thermistor chains were installed to measure permafrost conditions in the underlying prasinite bedrock. With bedrock temperatures at -3.3 °C (north borehole) and -2.5 °C (south borehole) below 10 m depth, these values are among the lowest recorded across the Alps, comparable to sites like Jungfraujoch (3,600 m a.s.l.) and Aiguille du Midi (3,700 m a.s.l.).

Borehole temperature data from the Großglockner – only the third site for direct permafrost monitoring in Austria – will enhance our understanding of permafrost thaw, rockfall activity, and infrastructure stability in sensitive high-alpine environments.

This work is part of the Interreg VI-A project FROST.INI, a cross-border initiative fostering cooperation between Austria and Italy. Special thanks to the FROST.INI project team, especially to Gerald Valentin, and external supporters, including Franz Goldschmidt from the Amt der Kärntner Landesregierung, for their significant contributions to making this effort possible.