Geology topics

Research about McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica

Source-linked reports with geographic coverage including McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2018

Drivers of solar radiation variability in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica

Annually averaged solar radiation in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica has varied by over 20 W m −2 during the past three decades; however, the drivers of this variability are unknown. Because small differences in radiation are important to water availability and ecosystem functioning in polar deserts, determining the causes are important to predictions of future desert processes. We examine the potential drivers of solar variability and systematically eliminate all but stratospheric sulfur dioxide. We argue that increases in stratospheric sulfur dioxide increase stratospheric aerosol optical depth and decrease solar intensity. Because of the polar location of the McMurdo Dry Valleys (77–78°S) and relatively long solar ray path through the stratosphere, terrestrial solar intensity is sensitive to small differences in stratospheric transmissivity. Important sources of sulfur dioxide include natural (wildfires and volcanic eruptions) and anthropogenic emission.

Scientific Reports↗

USGS2018

Decadal topographic change in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica: Thermokarst subsidence, glacier thinning, and transfer of water storage from the cryosphere to the hydrosphere

Recent local-scale observations of glaciers, streams, and soil surfaces in the McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica (MDV) have documented evidence for rapid ice loss, glacial thinning, and ground surface subsidence associated with melting of ground ice. To evaluate the extent, magnitude, and location of decadal-scale landscape change in the MDV, we collected airborne lidar elevation data in 2014–2015 and compared these data to a 2001–2002 airborne lidar campaign. This regional assessment of elevation change spans the recent acceleration of warming and melting observed by long-term meteorological and ecosystem response experiments, allowing us to assess the response of MDV surfaces to warming and potential thawing feedbacks. We find that locations of thermokarst subsidence are strongly associated with the presence of excess ground ice and with proximity to surface or shallow subsurface (active layer) water. Subsidence occurs across soil types and landforms, in low-lying, low-slope areas with impeded drainage and also high on steep valley walls. Glacier thinning is widespread and is associated with the growth of fine-scale roughness. Pond levels are rising in most closed-basin lakes in the MDV, across all microclimate zones. These observations highlight the continued importance of insolation-driven melting in the MDV. The regional melt pattern is consistent with an overall transition of water storage from the local cryosphere (glaciers, permafrost) to the hydrosphere (closed basin lakes and ponds as well as the Ross Sea). We interpret this regional melting pattern to reflect a transition to Arctic and alpine-style, hydrologically mediated permafrost and glacial melt.

Geomorphology↗

USGS2015

Potential for real‐time understanding of coupled hydrologic and biogeochemical processes in stream ecosystems: Future integration of telemetered data with process models for glacial meltwater streams

While continuous monitoring of streamflow and temperature has been common for some time, there is great potential to expand continuous monitoring to include water quality parameters such as nutrients, turbidity, oxygen, and dissolved organic material. In many systems, distinguishing between watershed and stream ecosystem controls can be challenging. The usefulness of such monitoring can be enhanced by the application of quantitative models to interpret observed patterns in real time. Examples are discussed primarily from the glacial meltwater streams of the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Although the Dry Valley landscape is barren of plants, many streams harbor thriving cyanobacterial mats. Whereas a daily cycle of streamflow is controlled by the surface energy balance on the glaciers and the temporal pattern of solar exposure, the daily signal for biogeochemical processes controlling water quality is generated along the stream. These features result in an excellent outdoor laboratory for investigating fundamental ecosystem process and the development and validation of process‐based models. As part of the McMurdo Dry Valleys Long‐Term Ecological Research project, we have conducted field experiments and developed coupled biogeochemical transport models for the role of hyporheic exchange in controlling weathering reactions, microbial nitrogen cycling, and stream temperature regulation. We have adapted modeling approaches from sediment transport to understand mobilization of stream biomass with increasing flows. These models help to elucidate the role of in‐stream processes in systems where watershed processes also contribute to observed patterns, and may serve as a test case for applying real‐time stream ecosystem models.

Water Resources Research↗

USGS2004

Denitrification and hydrologic transient storage in a glacial meltwater stream, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica

In extreme environments, retention of nutrients within stream ecosystems contributes to the persistence of aquatic biota and continuity of ecosystem function. In the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica, many glacial meltwater streams flow for only 5–12 weeks a year and yet support extensive benthic microbial communities. We investigated NO 3 − uptake and denitrification in Green Creek by analyzing small‐scale microbial mat dynamics in mesocosms and reach‐scale nutrient cycling in two whole‐stream NO 3 − enrichment experiments. Nitrate uptake results indicated that microbial mats were nitrogen (N)‐limited, with NO 3 − uptake rates as high as 16 nmol N cm −2 h −1 . Denitrification potentials associated with microbial mats were also as high as 16 nmol N cm −2 h −1 . During two whole‐stream NO 3 − −enrichment experiments, a simultaneous pulse of NO 2 − was observed in the stream water. The one‐dimensional solute transport model with inflow and storage was modified to simulate two storage zones: one to account for short time scale hydrologic exchange of stream water into and out of the benthic microbial mat, the other to account for longer time scale hydrologic exchange with the hyporheic zone. Simulations indicate that injected NO 3 − was removed both in the microbial mat and in the hyporheic zone and that as much as 20% of the NO 3 − that entered the microbial mat and hyporheic zone was transformed to NO 2 − by dissimilatory reduction. Because of the rapid hydrologic exchange in microbial mats, it is likely that denitrification is limited either by biotic assimilation, reductase limitation, or transport limitation (reduced NO 2 − is transported away from reducing microbes).

Limnology and Oceanography↗