Biogenic-Abiogenic Interactions and Soil Formation in Extreme Conditions of Untersee Oasis, Surroundings of Lake Untersee, Central Queen Maud Land, East Antarctica

Shamilishvili, George; Abakumov, Evgeny; Andersen, Dale T.

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-21614-6_25

Cited by 3 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…The surface sediments consist mainly of till and colluvium, often covered by a thin layer of aeolian sediments (Schwab 1998). Vegetation and lichens are absent, and the soils consist of poorly sorted sediments with very low organic content (Shamilishvili et al 2020).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

Palaeo-environmental significance of evaporative calcite crusts in the Untersee Oasis, East Antarctica

Lacelle,

Christy,

Faucher

et al. 2024

Antarctic Science

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Secondary carbonate precipitates on the surface of clasts have rarely been reported from Antarctica. Here, we infer the origin, age and palaeo-environmental significance of the calcite crusts in the Untersee Oasis, East Antarctica. The distribution of calcite crusts, which are up to 1 mm thick, is limited to locations with residual snow patches, and they have some of the highest δ18O (up to +17.4‰ Vienna Standard Mean Ocean Water (VSMOW)) and δ13C (up to +14.6‰ Vienna Pee Dee Belemnite (VPDB)) compositions of any carbonate deposits in terrestrial polar environments. Their δ18O and δ13C values are substantially enriched with respect to the isotopic values expected from equilibrium precipitation from the δ18O and δ13CDIC (DIC = dissolved inorganic carbon) of snow meltwater. The formation of the calcite crusts is ascribed to the evaporation of residual snow meltwater and the low relative humidity and strong winds, favouring a kinetic isotope effect. The 14C age distribution of the calcite crusts (1550 cal yr bp to modern) provides a minimum age for ice retreat and drainage of the palaeo-lake in Aurkjosen Cirque. However, in this polar desert environment in which surface melting is limited, the calcite crusts require sufficient snow accumulation and air temperatures warm enough to generate meltwater, and their age distribution corresponds to the late Holocene warm-wet climate period.

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Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%