514

Site number:

514

Authors:

IBC, GGC

Date recorded:

1983/01/20

Reason Sampled:

Soil weathering examination

Description:

Approximately 1km N of Battleship Promontory; a low lying part of the valley floor in an area with several sink holes; the site is on the floor of a sink hole near the edge

Altitude:

825 m

Aspect:

Nil

Slope:

0 °

Climate

Soil climate zone:

Central mountain

Estimated mean annual temperature:

-28 °C

Frozen ground depth:

0 cm

Frozen type:

Not known

Frozen comment:

Geology

Geological setting:

Ferrar Dolerite and Beacon Sandstone are the local rocks; the till includes some granite and other basement rock; these are not found up-valley so must have originated from the east; the sink holes suggest that the area may be underlain by stagnant ice; a few inliers of granite are present

Patterned ground:

Shallow rectangular patterned ground cracks on the side of the sink hole but none on the bottom

Surface weathering or surface features:

Salts precipitated on the moist soil surface; surface rocks are unstained with a fresh appearance resulting from the salt weathering

Soil

Soil parent material:

Dolerite, sandstone and granite gravelly till

Previous disturbance:

Nil

Soil weathering stage:

6 2 (Campbell & Claridge 1975)

Soil moisture status:

The site is a moist hollow; water was present at 25cm depth

Biological activity:

Nil observed