16 AUGUST 2022 WorldWide Drilling Resource® Mapping a Geothermal Anomaly Beneath Greenland Adapted from Information by Kiel University When it comes to understanding global geothermal heat flow, Greenland and the surrounding ocean floor has basically been a blind spot until now. Scientists recently dug up all available heat flow data and are using it to create common ground for working with Greenland geothermal heat as an alternative energy source. They compiled a new observation database and heat flow model and created a spatial map of heat flow in and around Greenland. It turns out, the ground beneath Greenland is even colder than previously thought. The new model, created with machine learning, shows heat flows substantially lower than estimated by past models which relied on much less information. In some of the older models, the mean geothermal heat flow per unit was several times greater than the newly published estimate. Although the mean heat flow across Greenland was colder than expected, the heat flow in coastal areas was much warmer than anticipated, which could be good news for populations living there. “Actually, this area along the west coast of Greenland has three times the heat flow as further inland, so it makes sense to investigate the possibility of harvesting the geothermal energy for the communities located there,” said Senior Scientist William Colgan from the Department of Glaciology and Climate at the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS). According to Colgan, this highlights how much is still unknown about the region. GEO Mapping cont’d on page 28 .
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