Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Resolution Of Lava Tubes With Ground Penetrating Radar, Sanaz Esmaeili

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Finding habitable places to keep astronauts safe from surface radiation, magnetic storms, and temperature fluctuations will be an important component of future planetary exploration missions. Remote sensing surveys on other planets indicate the presence of lava tubes. Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) has shown great potential for detection of tunnels in terrestrial environments. In this research, the capabilities of this near surface rapid exploratory tool for detection of lava tubes are investigated. This dissertation describes terrestrial examples of how GPR can be utilized to explore tubes and addresses the capabilities of GPR for resolving tube-related features such as the floor, fractures, …

Optimized Correlation Of Geophysical And Geotechnical Methods In Sinkhole Investigations: Emphasizing On Spatial Variations In West-Central Florida, Henok Gidey Kiflu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Sinkholes and sinkhole-related features in West-Central Florida (WCF) are commonly identified using geotechnical investigations such as standard penetration test (SPT) borings and geophysical methods such as ground penetrating radar (GPR) and electrical resistivity tomography (ERT). Geophysical investigation results can be used to locate drilling and field testing sites while geotechnical investigation can be used to ground truth geophysical results. Both methods can yield complementary information. Geotechnical investigations give important information about the type of soil, groundwater level and presence of low-density soils or voids at the test location, while geophysical investigations like GPR surveys have better spatial coverage and …