553

Site number:

553

Authors:

IBC, GGC

Date recorded:

1988/01/20

Reason Sampled:

Soil weathering examination

Description:

Walcott Bay, to the northeast of the Howchin Glacier; approximately 1km east of the Howchin Glacier on a long ridge surface; a rocky knoll about 10m below the crest of the ridge

Altitude:

800 m

Aspect:

SW

Slope:

3 °

Climate

Soil climate zone:

Coastal Antarctic

Estimated mean annual temperature:

-23 °C

Frozen ground depth:

45 cm

Frozen type:

Frozen comment:

45cm

Geology

Geological setting:

Basement rock is gneiss; on some ridge surfaces till is thin or absent; there is strong physical disaggregation along the joint planes which are nearly vertical

Patterned ground:

Nil

Surface weathering or surface features:

Strong joint plane surface crumbling and disaggregation; some weak to moderate surface staining; carbonate coatings beneath some clasts; sand infilling in cracks may aide bedrock fragmentation through wedging processes

Soil

Soil parent material:

Disaggregating and fractured gneissic bedrock with sand infilling along fracture planes

Previous disturbance:

Nil

Soil weathering stage:

6 2 (Campbell & Claridge 1975)

Soil moisture status:

Oceanic subxerous; snow is patchy on the ridge surface; the site is dry but the soil is moist below the surface

Biological activity:

Some green algae in patches beneath light coloured rocks