130

Site number:

130

Authors:

IBC, GGC

Date recorded:

1965/01/15

Reason Sampled:

Soil characterisation

Description:

Approximately 2km W of Lake Vashka on the moraine surface on the north side of the floor of the Barwick Valley; the profile site was on an uneven patterned ground surface, to the NE of site 129 where the surface was more gravelly

Altitude:

625 m

Aspect:

NE

Slope:

5 °

Climate

Soil climate zone:

Central mountains

Estimated mean annual temperature:

-23 °C

Frozen ground depth:

48 cm

Frozen type:

Hard ice-cemented over stagnant ice

Frozen comment:

48cm

Geology

Geological setting:

Webb Glacier in the upper Barwick Valley has retreated and left a series of till deposits and moraine surfaces of differing ages; the site is on moraines mapped by Calkin as Vida Drift; the main rock types in the area are dolerite, granite, granodiorite and Beacon Group sediments and the tills have these rocks in them; this second site on Vida Drift was examined to confirm the presence of ice core beneath Vida till as found at site 129 and to compare the ablation material immediately above the ice core with that higher in the soil profile;

Patterned ground:

hummocky patterned ground surface with 1m deep troughs and active movement in cracks

Surface weathering or surface features:

some slight cavernous weathering of granite boulders and minor surface exfoliation on dolerite boulders; pavement formation includes accumulations of pebbles and granules in depressions; surface boulders subrounded and wind abraded but mainly unstained

Soil

Soil parent material:

Bouldery Vida Drift till

Previous disturbance:

Nil

Soil weathering stage:

2 (Campbell & Claridge 1975)

Soil moisture status:

Xerous to subxerous; the site is dry and not subject to seepage; soil moisture only from periodic snowfall

Biological activity:

Nil observed