Approximately 4km east of Battleship Promontory; near some small ponds; the sample is from crumbled rock material with lichen growing in the rock cracks
Altitude:
925 m
Aspect:
Nil
Slope:
0 °
Location Data
Observer
IBC
GGC
GPS
No
Latitude Longitude DMS
76° 54' S 161° 07' E
76° 54' S 161° 07' E
Latitude Longitude DD
-76.900 161.117
-76.900 161.117
Latitude longitude precision DD
0.008 0.008
0.008 0.008
Locality
Convoy Range, Transantarctic Mountains; Alatna Valley
Survey
Ross Island & Vicinity, Antarctica, 1:250 000 US Geological Survey, 1986
Climate
Soil climate zone:
Coastal Mountain, xerous to subxerous
Estimated mean annual temperature:
-25
°C
Frozen ground depth:
0 cm
Frozen type:
Frozen comment:
Geology
Geological setting:
Alatna Valley has formed through ice recession from the Benson Glacier and ice from Staten Island Heights; the local rocks are extensive Beacon Sandstone outcrops capped with Ferrar Dolerite; till is extensive on the valley floor and includes granite from near the coast
Patterned ground:
Nil
Surface weathering or surface features:
Coarse grained dolerite is strongly crumbled and fragmented; fine grained dolerite has strongly oxidised surfaces with some exfoliation; some thin clay-like films are present in some of the rock cracks
Soil
Soil parent material:
Partly crumbled coarse-grained dolerite; the rock cracks have small accumulations of fine sand which may aid lichen occurrences
Previous disturbance:
Nil
Soil weathering stage:
6
Soil moisture status:
Moisture only available from periodic snow falls
Biological activity:
Lichen on rocks mainly in cracks; hyphae extend into the rock cracks