Alpine Bedrock Permafrost Measurements from the Matterhorn, 2008-2018

Over 114.5 million data points were collected from 29 sensor locations on the Matterhorn Hörnligrat at 3500 meters above sea level between 2008 and 2018. This dataset, created by the PermaSense project and shared by Samuel Weber, constitutes a ten-plus year record of in-situ measurements in steep bedrock permafrost. It includes primary and derived data products such as GNSS raw data, timelapse images, and time series for weather, ground temperature, resistivity, and fracture displacement.

Use Cases

• Developing process models for permafrost degradation based on long-term ground temperature and resistivity time series.
• Assessing environmental change in alpine regions based on a decade of multi-sensor data.
• Improving natural hazard warning systems for rockfalls based on fracture displacement and inclinometer data.
• Comparative studies of permafrost monitoring methodologies using data from 17 different sensor types.
• Validating remote sensing or geophysical models using precise GNSS-derived position data.

Strengths

• Over 114.5 million data points provide a substantial volume for analysis.
• Data spans more than ten years (2008-2018), offering long-term temporal coverage.
• Measurements come from 29 distinct sensor locations using 17 different sensor types, indicating diversity.
• Includes both raw data and derived, cleaned products (e.g., hourly aggregated values).

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• The last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.
• Data is specific to a single alpine location (Matterhorn Hörnligrat), which may limit generalizability.

Provenance

Source

PermaSense project

Collection Method

In-situ measurements from sensors installed in steep bedrock permafrost.

Time Range

2008-2018

Geography

Matterhorn Hörnligrat, Zermatt, Switzerland (3500 m a.s.l.)