Approximately 1km from the mouth of Nibelungen Valley on a gently undulating knoll comprising a granite bedrock outcrop
Altitude:
1400 m
Aspect:
N
Slope:
3 °
Location Data
Observer
IBC
GGC
GPS
No
Latitude Longitude DMS
77° 35.7' S 161° 22' E
77° 35.5' S 161° 22' E
Latitude Longitude DD
-77.5950 161.367
-77.592 161.367
Latitude longitude precision DD
0.0008 0.008
0.004 0.008
Locality
Wright Valley near the centre of the Asgard Range, to the SW of Lake Vanda in Nibelungen Valley
Survey
USGS, Antarctica 1:50,000 Topo. Ser. 1977 Lake Vanda Antarctica
Climate
Soil climate zone:
Inland Mountain
Estimated mean annual temperature:
-28
°C
Frozen ground depth:
25 > cm
Frozen type:
Frozen comment:
>25cm
Geology
Geological setting:
Granite outcrops on lower surfaces and mainly to the east in Wright Valley
Patterned ground:
Nil
Surface weathering or surface features:
A moderately developed pebble and cobble pavement of fragmented granite and occasional dolerite pebbles; surface staining mainly weak but a few clasts more strongly stained; staining mainly on upper surfaces
Soil
Soil parent material:
Fragmented granite bedrock with occasional dolerite pebble erratics; fines may be partly windblown or residual till
surface pebble and cobble pavement and granular gravel; rock particles mainly angular to subangular and weakly to moderately stained; salts beneath some stones,
405b
0 – 5 cm
pale brown (10YR 6/3) sandy pebble gravel; loose to weakly cohesive; weakly developed vesicular structure; a few fine salt flecks; rock particles mainly angular and unstained but few dolerite particles subrounded and moderately stained; distinct boundary,
405c
5 – 15 cm
light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) bouldery gravel; rocks are mainly fractured bedrock with fines in fissures; fine fraction loose; few salts mainly on rock edges; rock particles angular and unstained; indistinct boundary,
405d
15 – 25 cm
brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) bouldery gravel; rocks are fractured bedrock with fines in fissures; diffuse salts; rock particles angular and unstained, on fractured granite bedrock