463

Site number:

463

Authors:

IBC, GGC

Date recorded:

1979/12/14

Reason Sampled:

Soil weathering examination

Description:

Meyer Hills in the southeast of the Heritage Range, approximately 2km north of Beaudoin Peak in a cirque-like valley bottom, a low moraine surface on the crest of a flattish knoll

Altitude:

600 m

Aspect:

Nil

Slope:

0 °

Climate

Soil climate zone:

Inland/Coastal Mountain

Estimated mean annual temperature:

-20 °C

Frozen ground depth:

30 cm

Frozen type:

Ice-cemented

Frozen comment:

30cm

Geology

Geological setting:

The Ellsworth Mountains comprise a thick sequence of folded metasedimentary rocks comprising limestones, conglomerates and quartzites dating to Precambrian; the West Antarctic Ice Sheet is believed to have fluctuated greatly in response to global sea level changes and evidence of these fluctuations should be present in the tills and soil weathering record; the Meyer Hills are predominantly quartzitic sandstones; the tills are local valley glaciation deposits

Patterned ground:

Moderately developed broad nets with 25cm troughs, mostly snow filled

Surface weathering or surface features:

Some rock spalling and some splintering of argillites but negligible surface deflation, ventifaction or cavernous weathering; some salts and calcium carbonate coatings beneath some surface stones; some slight surface staining in places

Soil

Soil parent material:

Young till from greywacke sandstone/argillite with some schistose rocks

Previous disturbance:

Nil

Soil weathering stage:

6 2 (Campbell & Claridge 1975)

Soil moisture status:

Scattered snow patches but no moisture seen at the site; thaw ponds are present in the area

Biological activity:

Nil observed