In Lamjavagge, a 9-km(2) drainage basin with homogeneous lithology in
periglacial northern Swedish Lapland, water balance, water chemistry and
radio magnetotelluric geophysical investigations along selected profiles
were integrated with assessment of regolith thickness as well as of
ground frost conditions within the basin. In combination with direct
field observations, the geophysical profiles demonstrated presence of
relatively thin regolith in most of the investigated area, yet in some
parts, the bedrock was located deeper and locally was not detected at
40-m depth. TDS values of the water were generally very low. The areas
that contributed with the lowest ion concentrations were cold and had a
thin regolith, whereas there were higher concentrations in water that
drained radiation exposed slopes with earlier thaw and thicker regolith.
The low resistivities found along the profiles in the geophysical
investigations in combination with the relatively higher TDS values
found in related runoff and subsurface water samples showed that larger
volumes of ice-rich frozen ground were not found along the investigated
profiles in late August. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.