Ross Sea Region Soil Sites

North side of Lake Vanda in Wright Valley, near the eastern end on a sloping fan surface

Lithium chloride soil leaching experiment; the second sampling series to determining leaching rates in this

environment

Lake Vanda Antarctica 1:50 000 Topographic Series, 1977

cf. Notes for DESCR below

cf. Notes for GEOLAND below

Xerous to subxerous; minimal moisture from snowfall with very low soil moisture contents

SOIL MOISTURE STATUS

Partly sorted sandy fan gravel

SOIL PARENT MATERIAL

Weakly developed large polygons

SURFACE WEATHERING or

SURFACE FEATURES

Undisturbed surface with a well developed small pebble pavement with some clasts showing some ventifaction

PREVIOUS DISTURBANCE

Nil at site but previous sampling on ground 1m away for LiCl leaching trial

subrounded to rounded pebbles with occasional cobbles and abundant granules and coarse sand

some clasts weakly to moderately ventiform,

pale yellow (2.5Y 7/4 - 5Y 7/3) gravelly sand

few fine salt flecks adhering to rock particles

rock particles subrounded to angular and unstained,

pale yellow (2.5Y 7/4 - 5Y 7/3) gravelly sand

a few fine salt flecks adhering to rock particles

rock particles subrounded to angular and unstained,

pale yellow (2.5Y 7/4 - 5Y 7/3) gravelly sand

a few fine salt flecks adhering to rock particles

rock particles subrounded to angular and unstained,

pale yellow (2.5Y 7/4 - 5Y 7/3) gravelly sand

rock particles subrounded to angular and unstained,

FROZEN GROUND DEPTH(cm)

SOIL WEATHERING STAGE

The site lies within the zone of lake benches formed by former rises in the level of Lake Vanda; to the south, there is some minor broad polygonal patterns

indicating some ice cemented ground; the site is about half way up the fan. For the experiment in January 1994, two series of plots were established, about 20 m

apart, with 3 adjacent 1 meter square plots being irrigated with a LiCl solution and 1 plot being irrigated with H2O as a control. After an initial sampling,

subsequent samplings were made in January 1995 and in December 1995. Samplings were made from the irrigated plot and at 1 m intervals to 3 m down slope

from above the irrigated plot and also from the H2O control plot. This sample is from the eastern plot series and at the application plot

The site lies within the zone of lake benches formed by former rises in the level of Lake Vanda. The deposits are probably lake sediments that have been

subsequently reworked by somewhat mild fan depositional processes from periodic stream flows from adjacent mountain slopes. The deposits have a dominantly

sandy texture and are generally weakly to non stratified

Vol. Moisture

Drill Vol

Vol. Moisture

(BD=2)

Soluble Salt

Concentration

Gravimetric

Moisture

Part. Size

0.02-0.002

Part. Size

0.05-0.02