Mapped polygon pattern geomorphometry from HRSC-AX, 2009, Adventdalen, Svalbard

• Main Authors: Ulrich, Mathias, Härtel, Stefanie, Hauber, Ernst
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: PANGAEA 2020
• Subjects: AWI Arctic Land Expedition; Binary Object; Binary Object (File Size); Event label; File content; High Resolution Stereo Camera HRSC-AX; HRSC-AX; Ice-wedge Polygons; Latitude of event; Longitude of event; Multivariate Statistic; NO_Land_2009_Advendalen; Patterned Ground; Permafrost; Permafrost Characteristic; Polygonal Networks; Quantitative Terrain Analysis; Svalbard; Svalbard2009; Svalbard2009_Act-IWS; Svalbard2009_AD2; Svalbard2009_AD3; Svalbard2009_AD4; Svalbard2009_CALM; Svalbard2009_HCP; Svalbard2009_Isdammen; Svalbard2009_IWS; Active layer monitoring; Adventdalen; Arctic; Ice; permafrost; wedge*
• Online Access: https://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.921087; https://doi.org/10.1594/PANGAEA.921087

Polygonal systems formed by thermal contraction cracking are complex landscape features widespread in terrestrial periglacial regions. The manner in which cracking occurs is controlled by various environmental factors and determines dimension, shape, and orientation of polygons. We studied the geomorphometry of polygonally-patterned ground on Svalbard to draw a terrestrial analogy to small-scale polygonal structures on Mars. We performed a comparative quantitative terrain analysis based on high-resolution stereo remote-sensing data (i.e., HRSC-AX, HiRISE) in combination with terrestrial field data and multivariate statistics to determine the relationship of polygon geomorphometry to local environmental conditions. Results show that polygonal structures on Svalbard and in Utopia Planitia, Mars, are similar with respect to their size and shape. A comparable thermal contraction cracking genesis is likely. Polygon evolution, however, is strongly related to regional and local landscape dynamics. Individual polygon dimensions and orthogonality vary according to age, thermal contraction cracking activity, and local subsurface conditions. This dataset contains polygonal network data from 8 sites on Svalbard in shapefile format: Act-IWS = Active Ice-Wedge site Adventdalen (AD1) AD2 to AD4 = Adventdalen sites 2 to 4 IWS = Ice-wedge site Adventdalen CALM = Circumarctic Active-Layer Monitoring polygon site Adventdalen HCP = High Center Polygons site Adventdalen Isdammen = location Isdammen site Adventdalen Detailed information about methods and results can be found in the publication to which this dataset is a supplement (https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2011.07.002).