Anthropogenic Deformation

Human activity can induce deformation in the crust triggered by fluid extraction among other factors. These deformation signals can be measured from the space with InSAR, its temporal evolution in response to changes in the pumping rate tracked over time, and its impact over groundwater and geothermal resources and infrastructure mitigated.

ALOS-2 SM3 interferogram that shows ~2.5 cm of line-of-sight (LOS) subsidence during mid 2019 to mid 2021 in the Salar de Atacama basin (dashed black line). The subsidence results from a drop of ~10 m in the phreatic level in several wells due to brine extraction (yellow to red circles). The brine is extracted and then the water evaporated in plants in the middle of the salar. These plants are areas of very low coherence due to the continuous change of backscatering properties because of the presence of water. The LOS uplift in the SE and E parts (1 and 2 cm respectively) of the salar likely results from a combination of either salt growth and/or soil moisture changes in response to episodic rains triggered by the Andean monsoon.

CoSSC TanDEM-X bistatic interferogram that shows elevation changes as phase differences (in radians) with respect to a reference topography (Copernicus 30 m DEM). The elevation changes are due to the logging industry near the city of Valdivia, Chile.

Relevant publications

Documenting surface deformation at the first geothermal power plant in South America (Cerro Pabellón, Chile) by satellite InSAR time-series.
Lobos, D., Delgado, F., Pritchard, M., Cardona, C., Franco, L., Pedreros, G., Amigo, A. Journal of Volcanology and Geothermal Research, 2023, in press. doi.org/10.1016/j.jvolgeores.2023.107869.