A SkyTEM survey conducted for the National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI) in India has located abundant freshwater beneath Tapi riverbed, which means that the city of Surat may never face drinking water shortage in future.
Read the entire article in Times of India here.
Residents and visitors of the Grand Canyon West and Truxton/Peach Springs areas may see a low-flying helicopter towing a large hoop hanging from a cable starting on or around March 10, 2018, and lasting approximately one to two weeks. The low-flying helicopter will collect and record geophysical measurements for scientific research conducted by the U.S. Geological Survey.
Read the entire article and see maps at USGS’ website: https://www.usgs.gov/news/media-advisory-low-flying-helicopter-survey-groundwater-near-grand-canyon-west-and-peach
Photo by USGS
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is studying the groundwater resources of the western Hualapai Reservation and Truxton Basin in northwest Arizona. The study area is adjacent to the Grand Canyon, where surveying will occur above the south canyon rim on the tablelands of the Hualapai Plateau and in the Truxton Basin near Peach Springs. The airborne geophysical data, to be acquired by SkyTEM Surveys, are intended for rigorous inversion and will be used to develop a detailed hydrostratigraphic framework to support USGS groundwater modeling efforts and local water-resource management in this arid desert region.
SkyTEM continues to deliver new technological advancements to the airborne EM industry with a combination of superior survey economics and exceptional exploration capabilities. The systems are designed to minimize costs and maximize results and will assist water agencies, geotechnical engineers and mineral exploration companies face and solve 21st century challenges.
The newly engineered SkyTEM306 HP and SkyTEM312 HP (High Power) systems are mounted on a revolutionary rigid and lightweight carbon fiber frame.
Learn more about the new break-through technologies here:
The new systems are specifically designed to:
Please contact SkyTEM for further details about the benefits of the two new revolutionary helicopter TEM system.
The Swedish Minister of Trade and Industry, Mikael Damberg, inspected the SkyTEM survey for groundwater this week. The Swedish Geological Survey (SGU) has commissioned the survey, and the Project Manager Peter Dahlqvist expects that the data acquired will correspond to approximately 45,000 drillings and will provide valuable information about where to find new acquifers and hence drinking water.
Previous surveys over Öland and Gotland have proven valuable for finding groundwater that has become a scarce commodity in parts of Sweden.
Read more in the article in Metro (in Swedish) here: https://www.metro.se/artikel/jakten-p%C3%A5-grundvatten-g%C3%B6rs-fr%C3%A5n-luften-xt
SkyTEM is currently mapping aquifers for the Surat Municipal Corporation with the help of the National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI). The aquifer mapping survey is carried out over river Tapi and will provide knowledge of the exact location of aquifer, its size, quantum of water it can store, recharge points and French Well.
Read more about the groundwater mapping in Times of India: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/surat/surat-first-to-undertake-aquifer-mapping-study/articleshow/61028417.cms
Photo by Yellowstone National Park
The United States Geological Survey (USGS), University of Wyoming and Aarhus University in Denmark are applying the SkyTEM method to collect data over portions of Yellowstone National Park. The objectives of the airborne survey are to map lithological variations and structural controls on groundwater flow within the Park to delineate zones of cold fresh water, hot saline water, steam, clay and unaltered rock to gain a better understanding of Yellowstone’s myriad hydrothermal systems. The high quality data collected by the SkyTEM312 time-domain electromagnetic system data are intended for rigorous inversion and interpretation of the 3-D hydrogeologic conditions of the subsurface and will provide the first subsurface view of Yellowstone’s hydrothermal systems, tracking the geophysical signatures of geysers, hot springs, mud pots, steam vents and hydrothermal explosion craters to depths in excess of 1,000 feet.
The engineering built into SkyTEM technology is centered on the ability to deliver airborne data comparable to data collected by calibrated ground geophysical instruments. SkyTEM has carried out several surveys for the USGS in California, Montana, Nebraska, Colorado, Washington and Alaska. Over the last decade SkyTEM has completed many groundwater projects for governments, scientific organizations and private industry world-wide.
Read more about airborne geophysics.
More photos and video available from News Media.
The USGS has published a press release on the new study investigating groundwater from the air. Follow the link.
Much more media about the project:
Wyoming Public Media: Scientists Use Electromagnetic Technology To Examine What Lies Beneath Yellowstone
Winona Daily News: Researchers seek to find Old Faithful’s underground plumbing
KTVH: Yellowstone beneath the surface
California is suffering from drought and lack of drinking water. That is the reason why the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in cooperation with the California Water Resources Control Board, has contracted SkyTEM to conduct an electromagnetic geophysical survey of the subsurface in Southern San Joaquin Valley. The purpose of the survey is to protect all waters and monitor the groundwater that has the potential to be a source of drinking water and to characterize and monitor risk zones.
The survey is scheduled to start end September.
Read further in the press release from the USGS here.
The SkyTEM304 airborne geophysical system will soon be mapping groundwater resources in Arizona. The Bureau of Reclamation (BOR), Yuma, Arizona, manages groundwater commitments to critical water districts that use the Colorado River, Gila River, and Yuma area groundwater resources for irrigation and other agricultural activities. The Yuma Area is one of the most heavily-farmed areas in the United States and agriculture here accounts for an annual gross economic return of $3.2 billion. Crops are grown year-round and miles of water delivery infrastructure ensures the agricultural industry is successful. In order to better meet Arizona’s water commitments today and sustainably in the future the BOR is using the SkyTEM airborne geophysical method to characterization groundwater resources in the greater Yuma area.
Data from SkyTEM systems are used as input by scientific organizations and governments worldwide to help them better understand and manage groundwater resources. The team assembled for this project consists of Southern Helicopters, XRIBlue, AlliedGIS and SkyTEM. XRIBlue, a water exploration and production company has teamed with Allied GIS to process and deliver data that includes detailed geological cross sections and 3D imagery from the very near surface to depths over 350 m. Southern Helicopters, with several years of experience flying SkyTEM systems, will provide the helicopter and pilot. Data acquisition is expected to take place throughout September.
Read the Bureau of Reclamation’s press release below:
Media Contact: Doug Hendrix (702) 293-8391
For Immediate Release: August
Bureau of Reclamation begins low-level helicopter research flights over Yuma area
YUMA, Ariz. — Reclamation’s Yuma Area Office (YAO), in accordance with Federal Aviation Administration regulations, is announcing an upcoming research project involving low-level helicopter flights in the Yuma area. The helicopter will be towing a large hexagonal frame over the Yuma agricultural production areas and the Colorado River over the next few weeks to survey and capture groundwater imagery. The flights will begin the last week of August and continue for up to 3 weeks.
On August 8, 2016 YAO entered into a contract with SkyTEM to collect real-time airborne electromagnetic geophysical survey flow imagery to determine the amount, location, quality and breadth of groundwater existing in underground channels and aquifers in the area. The instrumentation mounted below the helicopter gathers geologic measurements to learn more about water quality and the extent of aquifers existing below the sub-surface layer.
As part of the research effort, the contract helicopter will fly repetitive survey and grid runs over the Yuma Mesa, Yuma Irrigation District, Gila River, Wellton Mohawk, and along the southerly border with Mexico.
As part of its primary mission, YAO monitors and manages the depth and concentration of groundwater levels in the Yuma area for the use and benefit of water districts who depend on these supplies from the Colorado and Gila Rivers for irrigation, municipal use, or other related purposes. To better meet current and future water use needs in the area, YAO is undertaking a groundwater resource characterization study throughout the greater Yuma vicinity.
In conducting the detailed research, technicians will affix electromagnetic based survey equipment to a hexagon-shaped support apparatus that is towed about 100 feet below the helicopter in a ‘spider web’ array that is designed to map geologic features beneath the earth. The helicopter will be staffed by experienced pilots specially trained for low-level flights using this type of equipment.
Data gathered from the research flights will help YAO better understand and manage groundwater resources, and will include detailed geological cross sections and 3D imagery from the very near surface to depths over 350 meters. Data acquisition is expected to take place throughout September.
Link to press release here.
SkyTEM is happy to announce that we are again working with Eastern Nebraska Water Resources Assessment (ENWRA) in their multi-year programme to map groundwater resources in the State. Several Natural Resource Districts (NRDs) have joined together to take advantage of the SkyTEM system and each has planned a mix of survey goals. SkyTEM is a helicopter-borne geophysical system capable of mapping subtle changes in geology from the very near surface to depths over 500 m.
See www.enwra.org for a map of the areas being studies as well as to download ENWRA – Introduction to a Hydrogeological Study for details on ENWRA’s projects and goals and approach to groundwater management.
In 2006 the NRDs determined that careful management of all aquifers, even those not directly connected to surface water, are important because the localized and hydrogeologically-complex nature of many aquifers in eastern Nebraska makes them susceptible to overdevelopment and depletion. The ultimate goal of ENWRA is to develop a three-dimensional geologic framework for all of eastern that can be used to determine location, depth to and volume of aquifers. ENWRA worked with the U.S. Geological Survey to assess geophysical tools for their applicability in mapping buried aquifers under deep layers of glacial till as found in parts of Nebraska. SkyTEM is pleased to have been selected for this year’s projects, and for all the previous years ENWRA has employed our unique technology.
The SkyTEM method, specifically developed to map buried aquifers, is widely accepted globally as the principal technique for mapping water resources. SkyTEM is an innovative and technologically advanced airborne geophysical system capable of mapping the top 500 metres of the Earth in fine detail and in 3 dimensions. It was conceived and engineered in Denmark, a country with a reputation for environmental care and R&D. SkyTEM has helped geological organizations and government water agencies on seven continents unearth a wealth of information about their aquifers and aided in their understanding of how geology and mankind can affect, and be affected by, groundwater resources. The SkyTEM method has mapped water resources on a Galapagos Island, important agricultural areas in the USA, Australia, Africa and India, islands in the Caribbean and Indian Ocean and even Antarctica. Recognized for its ability to quickly and accurately map geology in fine detail, the SkyTEM method is also employed globally for mineral and oil & gas exploration as well as environmental and engineering investigations.