Distribution of depth to ice-cemented soils in the high-elevation Quartermain Mountains, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica

• Published in: Antarctic Science
• Main Authors: Marinova, Margarita M., Mckay, Christopher P., Pollard, Wayne H., Heldmann, Jennifer L., Davila, Alfonso F., Andersen, Dale T., Jackson, W. Andrew, Lacelle, Denis, Paulsen, Gale, Zacny, Kris
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 2013
• Subjects: Geology; Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics; Oceanography; McMurdo Dry Valleys; Beacon Valley; University Valley; Quartermain Mountains; Farnell Valley; Antarc*; Antarctic Science; Antarctica
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s095410201200123x; https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S095410201200123X

Abstract We report on 475 measurements of depth to ice-cemented ground in four high-elevation valleys of the Quartermain Mountains, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. These valleys have pervasive ice-cemented ground, and the depth to ice-cemented ground and the ice composition may be indicators of climate change. In University Valley, the measured depth to ice-cemented ground ranges from 0–98 cm. There is an overall trend of increasing depth to ice-cemented ground with distance from a small glacier at the head of the valley, with a slope of 32 cm depth per kilometre along the valley floor. For Farnell Valley, the depth to ice-cemented ground is roughly constant ( c. 30 cm) in the upper and central parts of the valley, but increases sharply as the valley descends into Beacon Valley. The two valleys north of University Valley also have extensive ice-cemented ground, with depths of 20–40 cm, but exhibit no clear patterns of ice depth with location. For all valleys there is a tendency for the variability in depth to ice-cemented ground at a site to increase with increasing depth to ice. Snow recurrence, solar insolation, and surface albedo may all be factors that cause site to site variations in these valleys.