Permafrost and soil moisture investigations for comparison with soils from moist coastal regions
Description:
On the western side of the valley, near the highest part of the moraine ridge and hollow complex; 4m away from a bouldery moraine ridge and at the top end of a sloping hollow in a shallow depression, 1m deep and 25m wide; about .75k due east of East Beacon and 2km northwest of east Beacon
Altitude:
1775 m
Aspect:
NE
Slope:
7 °
Location Data
Observer
IBC
GGC
GPS
No
Latitude Longitude DMS
77° 49.4' S 160° 50' E
77° 49.10' S 160° 51.2' E
Latitude Longitude DD
-77.8233 160.83
-77.8183 160.8533
Latitude longitude precision DD
0.0008 0.08
0.0008 0.0008
Locality
Beacon Heights, on the south side of Upper Taylor Glacier between East and West Beacon
Survey
not recorded
Climate
Soil climate zone:
Central Mountain
Estimated mean annual temperature:
-30
°C
Frozen ground depth:
28 cm
Frozen type:
hard ice-cemented
Frozen comment:
28
Geology
Geological setting:
Local outcropping rocks are Ferrar Dolerite and Beacon Sandstone; the till at this site is similar to most of the valley floor tills being dominated by dolerite and sandstone but some foreign rocks, possibly crystalline basement, are present indicating a till source from outside the valley; the tills are probably older then the granodioritic up-valley till at the mouth of the valley; the surface may have been over ridden by ice leaving very thin or negligible till behind
Patterned ground:
Weakly developed polygons but larger and deeper cracks on the moraine ridge nearby
Surface weathering or surface features:
Dark brown stained, polished and pitted dolerite rocks forming a cobble and boulder pavement; a small sand wedge present in the surface 10cm; some salts beneath surface stones
Soil
Soil parent material:
Bouldery to cobbly gravelly sand; some finer patches of strongly oxidised material in the profile
Xerous; some snow falls in winter and summer months but most is lost through ablation or by blowing away; a light fall of snow covering the ground at the time of description
Biological activity:
Only endolithic algae observed below the surface of sandstone boulders or outcrops
Profile Description
Horizon
Depth
Description
776a
-4
–
0
cm
surface pebbles, cobbles bolders and granular sand; rounded to subrounded; and strongly stained; many small particles strongly altered; weakly developed pavement,
776b
0
–
3
cm
brown (7.5YR 5/4) cobbly to bouldery granular sandy gravel; weakly cohesive; weakly to moderately developed vesicular structure; rock particles subangular to subrounded and moderately stained with some yellowish red (5Y 5/8) weathering zones around a few clasts; distinct boundary,
776c
3
–
15
cm
yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) granular cobbly to bouldery gravel; loose; few fine salt flecks; rock particles angular to subangular, weakly to moderately stained and smaller particles moderately altered; indistinct boundary,
776d
15
–
28
cm
yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) granular bouldery to pebbly sandy gravel; loose; rock particles angular to subangular and weakly stained but smaller particles are distintly altered; sharp boundary, drill core samples in ice-cemented ground