title: Estimating aquifer properties from the water level response to Earth tides.
abstract: Water level fluctuations induced by tidal strains can be analyzed to estimate the elastic properties, porosity, and transmissivity of the surrounding aquifer material. We review underutilized methods for estimating aquifer properties from the confined response to earth tides. The earth tide analyses are applied to an open well penetrating a confined carbonate aquifer. The resulting range of elastic and hydraulic aquifer properties are in general agreement with that determined by other investigators for the area of the well. The analyses indicate that passive monitoring data from wells completed in sufficiently stiff, low porosity formations can provide useful information on the properties of the surrounding formation.
authors.affiliation: Water Resources Division, National Park Service, 1201 Oakridge Drive, Fort Collins, CO 80525, USA. paula_cutillo@nps.gov
authors.forename: Paula A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Cutillo
authors.forename: John D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Bredehoeft
mesh_terms: D004548:Elasticity; D005844:Geology / Q000379:methods*; D016062:Porosity; D055871:Tidal Waves; D014872:Water Movements; D014887:Weather