40

Site number:

40

Authors:

IBC, GGC

Date recorded:

1964/11/17

Reason Sampled:

Soil characterisation

Description:

On the west side of a hill on the southern tip of Inexpressible Island; the surface is moderately sloping, mantled with granite boulders up to 2m long and has 1-5m solifluction terraces

Altitude:

100 m

Aspect:

W

Slope:

5 °

Climate

Soil climate zone:

Coastal Antarctic

Estimated mean annual temperature:

-17 °C

Frozen ground depth:

15 cm

Frozen type:

Hard ice-cemented

Frozen comment:

15cm

Geology

Geological setting:

Granite Harbour Intrusives outcrop in places; dark coloured crystalline/schistose basement erratic boulders are also present

Patterned ground:

Solifluction terracette, 3-5m lobes with 1m risers

Surface weathering or surface features:

Surface boulders are mainly subangular and unstained

Soil

Soil parent material:

Predominantly granitic till, reworked through solifluction movement; soil on solifluction terrace mainly from granule & sand-sized material partially water-sorted during brief periods of thaw & solifluction movement

Previous disturbance:

Nil

Soil weathering stage:

1 (Campbell & Claridge 1975)

Soil moisture status:

Oceanic subxerous, little liquid water available at present, soils wet for a short period when patchy snow cover and icey permafrost thaws and water flows downslope

Biological activity:

Nil observed