Determining geophysical responses from burials in graveyards and cemeteries

ABSTRACTGraveyards and cemeteries around the world are increasingly designated as full. Therefore, there is a requirement to identify vacant spaces for new burials or to identify existing ones to exhume and then reinter if necessary. Geophysical methods offer a potentially noninvasive target detection solution; however, there has been limited research to identify optimal geophysical detection methods against burial age. We have collected multifrequency (225–900 MHz) ground-penetrating radar (GPR), electrical resistivity, and magnetic susceptibility surface data over known graves with different burial ages and soil types in three UK church graveyards. Results indicate that progressively older burials are more difficult to detect, but this decrease is not linear and is site specific. Medium- to high-frequency GPR and magnetic susceptibility was optimal in clay-rich soils, medium- to high-frequency GPR and electrical resistivity in sandy soils, and electrical resistivity and low-frequency GPR in coarse sand ...