Chemical weathering on selected nunataks in western Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica

• Main Author: Knox, Jenna Tracy
• Format: Master Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: Rhodes University 2018
• Subjects: Glacial climates > Antarctica > Queen Maud Land; Glaciology > Antarctica > Queen Maud Land; Chemical weathering > Antarctica > Queen Maud Land; Atmospheric carbon dioxide > Environmental aspects; Climatic changes > Antarctica > Queen Maud Land; Nunataks > Antarctica > Queen Maud Land; Antarctic; Austral; Dronning Maud Land; Queen Maud Land; The Antarctic; Antarc*; Antarctica
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/61658; https://corycommons.ru.ac.za/vital/access/manager/Repository/vital:28046

High latitude areas are sensitive to the impacts of climate change, and it is expected that the impact of greenhouse warming will be much higher in the polar regions than in any other climatic zones, with the most highly affected area being that of the Antarctic rim (Barsch, 1993). Weathering and pedogenic processes respond to variations in climate, with models predicting that chemical weathering may increase synchronously with global carbon dioxide levels increase, due to dissolution rates and the erosional impact of hydrological cycles in warming climates (Anderson & Anderson, 2010). As liquid water becomes more available in Antarctica the potential for chemical weathering, due to a less moisture-limited environment and increased temperatures, increases (Convey et al., 2009). Weathering processes are important for soil formation and the production of fine-grained material, with chemical weathering being an active constituent of this. Increased rates of soil formation are likely to occur, with global climate changes resulting in greater chemical weathering occurring in Antarctica. Opportunistic sampling was conducted during the Austral summer of 2016/2017, whereby rock, snow and meltwater samples were taken at various sites within the western portion of Dronning Maud Land of Antarctica. Rock samples were placed in resin, and cut with a diamond saw to create thin sections. Optical microscopy and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) were used to analyse mineral weight percentage with depth. Twelve soil samples were dried and weighed, sieved and statistically represented according to particle size. Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) determined the geochemical analysis for 10 water and snow samples. Rock hardness was inferred through the use of an Equotip, with rebound values recorded for multiple rock faces and samples. Thermal regimes of rock temperature was further recorded using a FLIR infrared camera, and documented for each rock face over a 24 hour period at 2 hourly ...