Shallow groundwater systems in a polar desert, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica

The McMurdo Dry Valleys (MDVs), Antarctica, exist in a hyperarid polar desert, underlain by deep permafrost. With an annual mean air temperature of ?18 °C, the MDVs receive <10 cm snow-water equivalent each year, collecting in leeward patches across the landscape. The landscape is dominated by expansive ice-free areas of exposed soils, mountain glaciers, permanently ice-covered lakes, and stream channels. An active layer of seasonally thawed soil and sediment extends to less than 1 m from the surface. Despite the cold and low precipitation, liquid water is generated on glaciers and in snow patches during the austral summer, infiltrating the active layer. Across the MDVs, groundwater is generally confined to shallow depths and often in unsaturated conditions. The current understanding and the biogeochemical/ecological significance of four types of shallow groundwater features in the MDVs are reviewed: local soil-moisture patches that result from snow-patch melt, water tracks, wetted margins of streams and lakes, and hyporheic zones of streams. In general, each of these features enhances the movement of solutes across the landscape and generates soil conditions suitable for microbial and invertebrate communities.     

The Helium Isotopic Chemistry of Lake Bonney, Taylor Valley, Antarctica: Timing of Late Holocene Climate Change in Antarctica

To better understand the long-term climate history of Antarctica, we studied Lake Bonney in Taylor Valley, Southern Victoria Land (78°S). Helium isotope ratios and He, Ne, Ar and N₂ concentration data, obtained from hydrocasts in the East (ELB) and West (WLB) Lobes of Lake Bonney, provided important constraints on the lakes Holocene evolution. Based on very low concentrations of Ar and N₂ in the ELB bottom waters, ELB was free of ice until 200 ± 50 years ago. After which, low salinity water flowing over the sill from WLB to ELB, covered ELB and formed a perennial ice cover, inhibiting the exchange of gases with the atmosphere. In contrast to the ELB, the WLB retained an ice cover through the Holocene. The brine in the WLB bottom waters has meteoric N₂ and Ar gas concentrations indicating that it has not been significantly modified by atmospheric exchange or ice formation. The helium concentrations in the deep water of WLB are the highest measured in non-thermal surface water. By fitting a diffusional loss to the ³He/⁴He, helium, and Cl profiles, we calculate a time of 3000 years for the initiation of flow over the sill separating the East and West Lobes. To supply this flux of helium to the lake, a helium-rich sediment beneath the lake must be providing the helium by diffusion. If at any time during the last million years the ice cover left WLB, there would be insufficient helium available to provide the current flux to WLB. The variations in water levels in Lake Bonney can be related to climatic events that have been documented within the Southern Victoria Land region and indicate that the lakes respond significantly to regional and, perhaps, global climate forcing.     

Remediation of metal-contaminated soil in polar environments: Phosphate fixation at Casey Station,East Antarctica

Remediation of metal-contaminated soils by phosphate fixation is successful in temperate environments, whereas its efficacy in cold and freezing environments is understudied. Phosphate fixation is a low-cost technique and is potentially very useful in these remote environments where the logistics of remediation are difficult and expensive. Here we describe a field study at Casey Station, East Antarctica, where phosphate (triple superphosphate and phosphate rock) and a buffer, Emag (magnesium carbonate and magnesium oxide), were introduced to contaminated soil from nearby Thala Valley landfill. A pilot scale experiment was set up, sampled and monitored from December 2008 to February 2010. Relative to levels in the untreated landfill material, concentrations of Cd, Cu, Co, Fe, Mn, Pb and Zn in leachates were decreased by phosphate addition (fixation most effective for Mn and Zn), whereas the technique increased concentrations of As, Cr and Ni. The most successful fixation was found for the 3:2 ratio of triple superphosphate and Emag, and the least effective fixation occurred with the 2:1:1 ratio of triple superphosphate, Emag and phosphate rock. Although there was an undesirable initial flush of metals from the contaminated soil in the 24–48 h after treatment addition, concentrations in leachate were reduced and stabilised in the second summer. During a full-scale field implementation, complementary techniques would be required to contain and treat contaminated runoff until leachates have reduced to acceptable concentrations.     

Coal-derived rates of atmospheric dust deposition during the Permian

Despite widespread evidence for atmospheric dust deposition prior to the Quaternary, quantitative rate data remains sparse. As dust influences both climate and biological productivity, the absence of quantitative dust data limits the comprehensiveness of models of pre-Quaternary climate and biogeochemical cycles. Here, we propose that inorganic matter contained in coal primarily records atmospheric dust deposition. To test this, we use the average concentration of inorganic matter in Permian coal to map global patterns and deposition rates of atmospheric dust over Pangea. The dust accumulation rate is calculated assuming Permian peat carbon accumulation rates in temperate climates were similar to Holocene rates and accounting for the loss of carbon during coalification. Coal-derived rates vary from 0.02 to 25 g m^− 2 year^− 1, values that fall within the present-day global range. A well-constrained East–West pattern of dust deposition corresponding to expected palaeoclimate gradients extends across Gondwana with maximum dust deposition rates occurring close to arid regions. A similar pattern is partially defined over the northern hemisphere. Patterns are consistent with the presence of two large global dust plumes centred on the tropics. The spatial patterns of dust deposition were also compared to dust cycle simulations for the Permian made with the Community Climate System Model version 3 (CCSM3). Key differences between the simulations and the coal data are the lack of evidence for an Antarctic dust source, higher than expected dust deposition over N and S China and greater dust deposition rates over Western Gondwana. This new coal-based dust accumulation rate data expands the pre-Neogene quantitative record of atmospheric dust and can help to inform and validate models of global circulation and biogeochemical cycles over the past 350 Myr.     

Flandrian pollen deposition rates and tree-line history in northern Fennoscandia

Previous absolute polien diagrams from northern Fennoscandia yielded evidence for a retreat of the pine limit from an earlier extended position to a position near the modern one between about 5000 and 3000 B.P. New absolute pollen data from the sediment core of Domsvatnet, a small tundra lake near the eastern coast of Varanger Peninsula, are used to demonstrate a parallel retreat in the birch limit. Areas outside the modern birch limit were colonized by early Flandrian pioneer birch woods between 9500 and 9000 B.P. and remained as birch woodland through middle Flandrian times until a retreat started around 5000 B.P. leading to the present tundra situation.
The Domsvatnet core shows anomalous high pollen deposition rates combined with relatively rapid matrix sedimentation, suggesting that pollen from outside the basin has been washed in with allochthonous material and concentrated in the sediment.     

Determination of recent deposition rates in Lake Constance with radioisotopic methods

Sedimentation rates were determined with the ²¹⁰Pb method in eight sediment cores from Lake Constance. The rate of deposition in the main basin (Obersee) varies from about 0.06 g cm^?2 y^?1 in the central part to 0.13 g cm^?2 y^?1 in the eastern part of the lake and then increases rapidly towards the Rhine delta. In the central lake area the rate of deposition has been approximately constant since 1900, and dating with the ²¹⁰Pb method is in good agreement with sedimentological observations. In the Konstanzer Trichter area, the deposition rate has been increasing since about 1955 as a result of eutrophication and subsequent high carbonate production. Dating with ¹³⁷Cs is fairly accurate for sediments deposited at a high rate, but is questionable for slowly accumulating ones. A positive correlation of ²¹⁰Pb fluxes and sedimentation rates indicates that ²¹⁰Pb flux into sediments follows the distribution pattern of solids. ²¹⁰Pb profiles in four sediment cores interpreted in terms of a constant flux model display synchronous fluctuations of the sedimentation rate; however, their relation to long-range particulate input variations remains to be proved. Sedimentation rates determined with the ²¹⁰Pb method were used to calculate recent nutrient and heavy metal fluxes. Anthropogenic fluxes of Zn and Pb are in the same range of magnitude as in other polluted areas in Europe and America.     

Estimation of weathering rates for critical load calculations in Finland

 The formation of base cations through mineral weathering in forest soils is one of the key parameters in calculating critical loads. Weathering rates in Finland have been estimated using a variety of methods. In the first approach, three weathering rate categories were assigned to soils according to the bedrock type. The second approach was based on an empirical relationship obtained from Swedish field studies. Changes in zirconium content through the soil profile were used to estimate element losses in soil after deglaciation. These calculated losses correlated well with the total calcium and magnesium concentrations in till C-horizons and the effective temperature sum (ETS). Comprehensive geochemical data for the parent till fine fraction (<0.06 mm) was available through the reconnaissance scale till geochemical mapping program of the Geological Survey of Finland (GSF). The equations obtained from Swedish studies were based on the use of the coarse (<2.0 mm) till fraction, and the differences in element concentrations between the fine and coarse size fractions remained a potential source of uncertainty estimating overall weathering rates. In the third approach, new geochemical data from the <2.0 mm till fraction from southern Finland were used to make new weathering rate estimates. The use of soil geochemistry instead of bedrock map classification clearly led to an improvement in the estimates of soil weathering rates in glacied terrains. The use of the fine till fraction (<0.06 mm) in the zirconium approach generally resulted in overestimations of the weathering rate. The new geochemical data for the coarse till fraction (<2 mm) are now consistent with the input requirements of the zirconium method, although the results still require further evaluation. Finnish soil profiles have a shorter weathering history than most of the Swedish ones and the uppermost layer in Finnish podsols has in some cases developed in a different till layer than the C-horizon. Received: 15 October 1995 · Accepted: 8 March 1996     

Estimation of dust fallout rates in the northern Arabian Gulf

The penetration of dust clouds over a sea surface is modelled as a sediment transport-diffusion problem. The model is used to determine the steady state concentration field of two-dimensional dust clouds during offishore dust storms. The rates of dust deposition into the sea can then be calculated from the obtained concentration fields. The model was applied to offshore dust storms blowing over the Arabian Gulf, yielding estimated dust sedimentation rates of 0–8 mm yr^?1. This is substantially higher, by several orders of magnitude, than dust fallout estimates in most seas of the world. The calculated fallout rates are in line with the results of existing field measurements.     

Coal-derived rates of atmospheric dust deposition during the Jurassic-Cretaceous greenhouse periods

The study of dust deposition records in geological history is of great significance to the study of paleoclimate evolution during deep periods. Because dust can directly influence the biochemical processes and climate evolution of the Earth. However, the absence of quantitative data on dust limits the systematic and comprehensive study of paleoclimate evolution during deep periods. Prior to the Quaternary period, most quantitative studies on atmospheric dust have focused on the Permian era. However, in the entire Mesozoic era, there are still no quantitative data available on atmospheric dust deposition rates. We utilized the average concentration of inorganic matter in coal from the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods to depict the dust concentration and corresponding dust deposition rate in the atmospheric system during these periods. We also conducted a correlation analysis using the distribution of arid source areas. The results show that the values of ash concentration and dust deposition rates are higher near the arid provenance and lower far away from it. Furthermore, in this study, we have compared the latitudinal variation gradient of dust deposition rates under the icehouse and greenhouse climates by using the end of the Permian and Quaternary as representatives of icehouse climate and the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods as representatives of the greenhouse climate. Our findings indicate that there is a higher ash concentration, dust deposition rate, and dust deposition rate variation gradient in the air under the icehouse climate, while there is a lower ash concentration, dust deposition rate, and dust deposition rate gradient in the air under the greenhouse climate. We have also discussed the dust sources during the Mesozoic period, as well as the differences in ash data under greenhouse and icehouse conditions. This provides a strong basis for studying the atmospheric environment after the modern climate entered the ice age.     

Geochemistry of soils of King George Island, South Shetland Islands, West Antarctica: Implications for pedogenesis in cold polar regions

Fine fractions of soils on the Barton Peninsula, King George Island, West Antarctica have been forming during the last 6000 yr since the last deglaciation. Texturally, they are mostly composed of mineral and rock fragments with some volcanic ashes, which are also indicated by geochemical compositions representing for the nonclay silicate minerals and low values of chemical index of alteration. No significant changes are observed in major- and trace element abundances. Such geochemical characteristics suggest that chemical weathering of bedrocks on the Barton Peninsula seems insignificant and that the soils are composed of physically weathered mineral and rock fragments which are mixed with eolian additions of volcanic ashes and Patagonian dusts. Chondrite-normalized rare earth element (REE) distribution patterns of the Barton Peninsula soils are slightly different from those of bedrocks, indicating that the REE abundances and characteristics were influenced by eolian additions. Mixing calculations, which mass-balance the REEs, suggest that volcanic ashes blown from Deception Island were the major eolian contributor, followed by atmospheric dusts sourced from Patagonia, South America. Even in the warmer and humid climatic conditions in the maritime Antarctic region, the chemical weathering of bedrocks appears to be insignificant, probably due to the relatively short duration of weathering since the last deglaciation.     

Estimation of evaporation rates over the Arabian Sea from satellite data

Utilizing both the SAMIR brightness temperatures of Bhaskara II and GOSSTCOMP charts of NOAA satellite series, the evaporation rates over the Arabian Sea for June 1982 are estimated through the bulk aerodynamic method. The spatial distribution of evaporation rates estimated from the satellite data sets coincides well with those obtained from ship observations as well as from climatological data. The accuracy in the estimation of evaporation rates has considerably been improved after the removal of bias in sea surface temperature and is about ±0·8 mm/day.     

南极格罗夫山6块非平衡型普通球粒陨石的矿物-岩石学特征

主要报导了南极格罗夫山新回收的6块非平衡型普通球粒陨石的岩石学和矿物化学特征.它们都保存了原始的矿物-岩石学特征,包括非常清晰的球粒结构、基质不透明、橄榄石和低钙辉石颗粒具有明显的成分环带、以及颗粒之间极不均匀的化学组成等.这6块陨石包括3块高铁群(H3)和3块低铁群(L3)群.根据非平衡型普通球粒陨石中橄榄石成分Fa变化的PMD(相对标准偏差)值与陨石热变质程度的相关性,进一步划分岩石类型亚类:CRV 020016为H3.7型、GRV 020162为H3.5型、GRV 020166为H3.4型、GRV 020106为L3.7型、GRV 020164为L3.7型、GRV 020165为L3.7型.全部6块陨石的冲击变质程度很低,为S1-S2;样品比较新鲜,风化作用划分为W1-W2.     

Estimation of soil erosion rates in a subtropical mountain watershed using 137Cs radionuclide

The formulation of watershed management strategies to protect water resources threatened by soil erosion and sedimentation requires a thorough understanding of sediment sources and factors that drive soil movement in the watershed. This paper describes a study of medium-term water-driven soil erosion rates in a mountainous watershed of the Shihmen Reservoir in Taiwan. A total of 60 sampling sites were selected along a hillslope. At each sampling site, the inventory ¹³⁷Cs activity was determined and then calculated with the diffusion and migration model to derive soil erosion rates. The rates are one to two orders of magnitude lower than estimates using the Universal Soil Loss Equation, a soil erosion model often used in Taiwan. Results of multiple regression analysis indicate that the spatial variability of soil erosion rates is associated with the relative position of a sampling site to the nearest ridge and soil bulk densities (r ² = 0.33, p < 0.01). Finally, the patterns of soil redistribution rates on the hillslope follow the ¹³⁷Cs hillslope model as soil erosion increases in the downslope direction. No deposition site is found at footslope because soil deposition is swept away by regular flooding along the stream channel. This study is an important first step in using ¹³⁷Cs as a tracer of soil redistribution in mountainous watersheds of Taiwan.     

Stratigraphic architecture of the Cenozoic succession in the McMurdo Sound region,Antarctica: An archive of polar palaeoenvironmental change in a failed rift setting

The Victoria Land Basin forms part of the failed West Antarctic Rift, and preserves a Cenozoic succession up to 4 km thick that records the onset of Cenozoic glaciation, and the history of Antarctic glaciation over the past 34 Myr. This succession is relevant both to investigations of modern climate change and to studies of long‐term palaeoclimate change in general. This study provides a sedimentological and stratigraphic review of the Victoria Land Basin succession, based on analysis of several continuous drillcores acquired since the 1970s, and supported by seismic stratigraphic analysis of a large array of seismic reflection data. An array of fifteen lithofacies is recognized within the Victoria Land Basin Cenozoic succession, including fossiliferous and diversely bioturbated mudrocks and diatomites, texturally mature sandstones and conglomerates, mixed mudstones and sandstones with dispersed gravel with restricted bioturbation, and diamictites and associated lithologies. These facies record a variety of marine, glaciomarine, proglacial and subglacial environments. Locally, volcanic and volcaniclastic deposits are interbedded in the succession. Lithofacies are arranged in repetitive vertical stacking patterns (depositional sequences) that record glacial advance–retreat cycles with attendant relative sea‐level changes. Seven varieties of depositional sequences (stratigraphic motifs) are recognized within the succession as a whole, and interpreted to record a range of depositional settings from rifts unaffected by glacial ice (Motif 7), through varying degrees of glacial influence with abundant meltwater contributions (Motifs 6 to 3), to cold, polar glaciated environments such as that of today (Motifs 2 and 1). Overall, there is a gradual trend upward through the succession from Motif 7 at the base towards Motif 1 at the top, but the trend is not monotonic. A significant conclusion of this work is that a record of dynamic climate and glacial conditions is preserved through the entire 34 Myr period of the Cenozoic icehouse, at least in the Victoria Land Basin. Intervals characterized by consistent stratigraphic style (motifs) are recognized throughout the Victoria Land Basin succession. These intervals are of 1 to 6 Myr duration, each containing numerous depositional sequences; they are one to two orders of magnitude longer than glacial–interglacial cycles, and record periods during which environmental conditions varied in an internally consistent manner. These intervals are considered to reflect convolutions of orbital parameters that remained stable for periods of 10⁶ a, and then switched to alternative configurations. Such intervals are directly analogous to 1 to 8 Myr intervals characterized by glaciogenic strata that are preserved within the late Palaeozoic of eastern Australia among other areas, and may be a recurring stratigraphic response to icehouse climate regimes through geological time.     

Estimation of effective hydrogeological parameters by considering varying heterogeneity and pumping rates

Darcy’s law and pumping tests, Tabu searches (TS) integrated with the Adjoint State Method (ASM), are two upscaling approaches used to transform local hydrogeological parameters at the scale of measurement into effective parameters on larger scales. This study proposed the above methods in order to estimate the effective parameters of heterogeneous and anisotropic aquifers at different degrees of heterogeneity (variances and correlation lengths). The results revealed three important principles: (1) the means of the effective transmissivities by Darcy’s law under different Dirichlet boundary conditions are used as the real ones in this study, because the optimal values under different Dirichlet boundary conditions are very close to each other at the same level of heterogeneity; (2) the estimations by TS integrated with ASM at low degrees of heterogeneity are much closer to the means of optimums by Darcy’s law than the estimations at high degrees of heterogeneity. Regardless of the pumping rate, the optimum at high degrees of heterogeneity is not good enough to represent the total study field. In considering the estimations at low degrees of heterogeneity, the drawdown caused by a low pumping rate is not sufficient to identify the effective parameters, while the drawdown caused by a higher pumping rate is useful for estimating the effective parameters. This suggests that the range of pumping rates influences the results estimated by TS and ASM, and the effective parameters identified using the effective range of pumping drawdown are more than enough to represent the whole study aquifer. With a larger variance of heterogeneity, the range of the pumping rate becomes smaller, leading to results closest to those estimated by Darcy’s law; (3) the estimations are influenced by the variances of heterogeneity more than the correlation lengths of heterogeneity.     

The influence of sulfur deposition rates on sulfate retention patterns and mechanisms in aerated forest soils

Stable isotope ratios were used as a tracer for S flow and transformations in an irrigation experiment with 5 different German forest soils. Seventy-five lysimeters constructed from soil cores, 15 from each site, were irrigated over 20 months with SO₄-rich artificial canopy throughfall, simulating 3 different S input levels: 35 kg S ha⁻¹ in treatment I, 63 kg S ha⁻¹ in treatment II, and 131 kg S ha⁻¹ in treatment III. The δ³⁴S value of the irrigation SO₄ was more than 22‰ higher than those of total S in the untreated soils. Mass and isotope balances for different soil S compounds were used to assess the patterns and mechanisms of S retention in individual soil horizons and their dependence on S deposition levels. Independent of the S deposition level, on average 12±5 kg ha⁻¹ of the applied S were bound organically by the microbial biomass in all soils. Immobilization of irrigation SO₄ occurred predominantly in the topsoil horizons with the formation of C-bonded S being more prevalent than the synthesis of organic sulfates. Tracer retention via formation of organic soil S compounds accounted for up to 50% of the irrigation SO₄ in treatment I, from 16 to 25% in treatment II, and less than 20% in treatment III. The dominant process of inorganic S retention in the soils appeared to be adsorption of SO₄, but precipitation of aluminum hydroxy sulfate minerals constituted a second potential inorganic retention process in some soils. Sulfate adsorption increased with increasing sesquioxide content of the soils and with increasing S deposition rates. In soils with high sesquioxide contents, typically more than 70% of the irrigated S was retained inorganically, whereas in the soil with the lowest sesquioxide content, generally less than 50% of the labeled irrigation S was detected in inorganic form. In the latter soil, the sesquioxide content was not high enough to fully adsorb the elevated SO₄ inputs in treatments II and III. Consequently, increased tracer S export with the seepage water SO₄ was observed in the experimental variants with elevated SO₄ deposition rates. In soils with high sesquioxide contents, the elevated SO₄ inputs in treatments II and III were fully retained in the soil horizons in inorganic form during the 20 months of the experiment and thus increased seepage water export of labeled SO₄ was not observed. The ability to inorganically retain tracer S in the mineral soil horizons was identified as the major factor regulating the extent of tracer S export with the seepage water at 60 cm depth. The high retention of labeled S in all soils combined with the comparatively low recovery of irrigation SO₄ with the seepage water implies that the mean transit time of S in the uppermost 60 cm of the acid forest soils varies between several years and many decades, much longer than previously thought.     

Estimation of biogenic silica contents in marine sediments using seismic and well log data: Sediment Drift 7, Antarctica

Petrophysical properties (wet bulk density, porosity, P-wave velocity) are used to predict biogenic silica contents along a seismic reflection profile that ties two well sites, 1095 and 1096, drilled by Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) Leg 178 on sediment drifts on the Pacific continental margin of the Antarctic Peninsula. The biogenic silica contents along the seismic reflection profile were estimated on the basis of three hypotheses about petrophysical properties distributions in the two boreholes and statistical relationships between biogenic silica and other petrophysical properties, which were established on various sediment layers within the boreholes. Our study demonstrates the possibility to reliably predict the distribution of biogenic silica in the sub-seabed sediments if seismic data processed with amplitude preservation are used and statistical relations are considered. We conclude that the statistical extrapolation of biogenic silica content along seismic reflection profiles tied to borehole data is an efficient tool to quantify the amounts of silica undergoing crystalline transformation, which may have strong implications for submarine slope destabilisation.     

Cascades of subglacial lakes in Antarctica

Progress in understanding cascades of subglacial lakes in Antarctica and in the dynamics of their surface was derived using satellite laser altimetry measurements ICESat. The morphological and dynamical signs indicate subglacial lakes and the positions of their shore lines. Oscillations of surfaces in transition zones are periodic, while the changes in surface elevation above subglacial lakes are random. The pattern of surface displacements above cascades of subglacial lakes in Antarctica and their transition zones as similar. In the sense of technology, this paper initiates the method of mapping subglacial lakes based on satellite laser measurements of elevation.     

First evidence of Pentoxylales in Antarctica

Plant remains from the Byers Peninsula, South Shetlands Islands, are described. These are leaves referred toTaeniopterissp. and female fructifications referred toCarnoconites llambiasiiCésari sp. nov. They are considered to belong to the Pentoxylales, originally described from India, Australia and New Zealand. This is the first record of this group of gymnosperms from Antarctica. The occurrence contributes to further differentiation between floras of this part of Gondwana and Laurasia.