Snow-Patch Influence on Soil Biogeochemical Processes and Invertebrate Distribution in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica

• Main Authors: Gooseff, Michael N., Barrett, John E., Doran, Peter T., Fountain, Andrew G., Lyons, W. Berry, Parsons, Andrew N., Porazinska, Dorota L., Virginia, Ross A., Wall, Diana H.
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: PDXScholar 2003
• Subjects: Biogeochemistry > Cold regions; Antarctica > Environmental conditions; Glaciers > Antarctica > McMurdo Dry Valleys; Biotic communities > Antarctica; Biogeochemistry; Austral; McMurdo Dry Valleys; Taylor Valley; Polar Plateau; Antarc*; Antarctica; polar desert
• Online Access: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/geog_fac/7; https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1006&context=geog_fac

The McMurdo Dry Valleys is the largest of the ice-free areas in Antarctica. Precipitation events in excess of 1 cm of snow accumulation are rare. During the winter, snow is transported by strong katabatic winds blowing from the polar plateau, and deposited into the lee of topographic features (e.g.,...