Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-2plfb Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-20T11:42:45.984Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The geochemistry of upland ponds, Taylor Valley, Antarctica

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 September 2011

W. Berry Lyons ,
Kathleen A. Welch ,
Christopher B. Gardner ,
Chris Jaros ,
Daryl L. Moorhead ,
Jennifer L. Knoepfle  and
Peter T. Doran
W. Berry Lyons*
Affiliation:
Byrd Polar Research Center, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210-1002, USA School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210-1002, USA
Kathleen A. Welch
Affiliation:
Byrd Polar Research Center, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210-1002, USA
Christopher B. Gardner
Affiliation:
Byrd Polar Research Center, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210-1002, USA School of Earth Sciences, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210-1002, USA
Chris Jaros
Affiliation:
INSTAAR, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO 80309, USA
Daryl L. Moorhead
Affiliation:
Department of Earth, Ecological and Environmental Sciences, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH 43606, USA
Jennifer L. Knoepfle
Affiliation:
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, USA
Peter T. Doran
Affiliation:
Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, USA
*
[email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica are the largest ice-free region on the continent. These valleys contain numerous water bodies that receive seasonal melt from glaciers. For forty years, research emphasis has been placed on the larger water bodies, the permanent ice-covered lakes. We present results from the first study describing the geochemistry of ponds in the higher elevations of Taylor Valley. Unlike the lakes at lower elevations, the landscape on which these ponds lie is among the oldest in Taylor Valley. These upland ponds wax and wane in size depending on the local climatic conditions, and their ionic concentrations and isotopic composition vary annually depending on the amount of meltwater generated and their hydrologic connectivity. This study evaluates the impact of changes in summer climate on the chemistry of these ponds. Although pond chemistry reflects the initial meltwater chemistry, dissolution and chemical weathering within the stream channels, and possibly permafrost fluid input, the primary control is the dilution effect of glacier melt during warmer summers. These processes lead to differences in solute concentrations and ionic ratios between ponds, despite their nearby proximity. The change in size of these ponds over time has important consequences on their geochemical behaviour and potential to provide water and solutes to the subsurface.

Keywords

climate variationevapoconcentrationMcMurdo Dry Valleysmeltwatersolutes
Type
Biological Sciences
Information
Antarctic Science , Volume 24 , Issue 1 , 06 February 2012 , pp. 3 - 14
Copyright
Copyright © Antarctic Science Ltd 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Angino, E.E., Armitage, K.B.Tash, J.C. 1962. Chemical stratification in Lake Fryxell, Victoria Land, Antarctica. Science, 138, 34–36.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Borghini, F.Bargagli, R. 2004. Changes of major ion concentrations in melting snow and terrestrial waters from northern Victoria Land, Antarctica. Antarctic Science, 16, 107–115.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Doran, P.T., McKay, C.P., Clow, G.D., Dana, G.L., Fountain, A.G., Nylen, T.Lyons, W.B. 2002. Valley floor climate observations from the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica, 1986–2000. Journal of Geophysical Research, 107, 4772.Google Scholar
Drever, J.I.Smith, C.L. 1978. Cyclic wetting and drying of the soil zone as an influence on the chemistry of ground water in arid terrains. American Journal of Science, 278, 1448–1454.Google Scholar
Ebnet, A.F., Fountain, A.G.Nylen, T.H. 2005. An index model of stream flow at below freezing-temperatures in Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Annals of Glaciology, 40, 76–82.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eugster, H.P.Jones, B.F. 1979. Behavior of major solutes during closed-basin brine evolution. American Journal of Science, 279, 609–631.Google Scholar
Foreman, C.M., Wolf, C.F.Priscu, J.C. 2004. Impact of episodic warming events on the physical, chemical and biological relationships of lakes in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Aquatic Geochemistry, 10, 239–268.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fountain, A.G., Nylen, T.H., Monaghan, A., Basagic, H.J.Bromwich, D. 2010. Snow in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. International Journal of Climatology, 30, 633–642.Google Scholar
Fountain, A.G., Lyons, W.B., Burkins, M.B., Dana, G.L., Doran, P.T., Lewis, K.J., McKnight, D.M., Moorhead, D., Parsons, A.N., Priscu, J.C., Wall, D.H., Wharton, R.A. JrVirginia, R.A. 1999. Physical controls on the Taylor Valley ecosystem, Antarctica. BioScience, 49, 961–971.Google Scholar
Gooseff, M.N., Lyons, W.B., McKnight, D.M., Vaughn, B.H., Fountain, A.G.Dowling, C. 2006. A stable isotopic investigation of a polar desert hydrologic system, McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research, 38, 60–71.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Green, W.J., Angle, M.P.Chave, K.E. 1988. The geochemistry of Antarctic streams and their role in the evolution of four lakes in the McMurdo Dry Valleys. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 52, 1265–1274.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harris, K., Carey, A.E., Welch, K.A., Lyons, W.B.Fountain, A.G. 2007. Solute and isotope geochemistry of near-surface ice melt flows in Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Geological Society of America Bulletin, 199, 548–555.Google Scholar
Haskell, T.R., Kennett, J.P., Prebble, W.M., Smith, G.Willis, I.A.G. 1965. The geology of the middle and lower Taylor Valley of south Victoria Land, Antarctica. Transactions of the Royal Society of New Zealand, Geography, 2, 169–186.Google Scholar
Healy, M., Webster-Brown, J.G., Brown, K.L.Lane, V. 2006. Chemistry and stratification of Antarctic meltwater ponds II: inland ponds of the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Victoria Land. Antarctic Science, 18, 525–533.Google Scholar
Horita, J. 2009. Isotopic evolution of saline lakes in the low-latitude and Polar regions. Aquatic Geochemistry, 15, 43–70.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jaros, C.L. 2002. Climatic controls on interannual variation in streamflow in Fryxell Basin, Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Msc thesis, University of Colorado, 91 pp.Google Scholar
Keys, J.R.Williams, K. 1981. Origin of crystalline cold desert salts in the McMurdo Region, Antarctica. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 45, 2299–2309.Google Scholar
Levy, J.S., Fountain, A.G., Gooseff, M.N., Welch, K.A.Lyons, W.B. In press. Water tracks and permafrost in Taylor Valley, Antarctica: Extensive and shallow groundwater connectivity in a cold desert ecosystem. Geological Society of America Bulletin.Google Scholar
Lyons, W.B., Welch, K.A., Neumann, K., Moorhead, D.McKnight, D.M. 1998. Geochemical linkages among glaciers, streams and lakes within the Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Antarctic Research Series, 72, 77–92.Google Scholar
Lyons, W.B., Welch, K.A., Carey, A.E., Doran, P.T., Wall, D.H., Virginia, R.A., Fountain, A.G., Csatho, B.Tremper, C. 2005. Groundwater seeps in Taylor Valley, Antarctica: an example of a subsurface melt event. Annals of Glaciology, 40, 200–206.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Marchant, D.R.Denton, G.H. 1996. Miocene and Pliocene paleoclimate of the Dry Valleys region, southern Victoria Land: a geomorphological approach. Marine Micropaleontology, 27, 253–271.Google Scholar
McKnight, D.M., Niyogi, D.K., Alger, A.S., Bomblies, A., Conovitz, P.A.Tate, C.M. 1999. Dry Valleys streams in Antarctica: ecosystems waiting for water. Bioscience, 49, 985–995.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Moorhead, D.L. 2007. Mesoscale dynamics of ephemeral wetlands in the Antarctic Dry Valleys: implications to production and distribution of organic matter. Ecosystems, 10, 87–95.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Moorhead, D.L., Barrett, J.E., Virginia, R.A., Wall, D.W.Porazinska, D. 2003. Organic matter and soil biota of upland wetlands in Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Polar Biology, 26, 567–576.Google Scholar
Smol, J.P.Douglas, M.S.V. 2007. Crossing the final ecological threshold in high Arctic ponds. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 104, 12 395–12 397.Google Scholar
Timperley, M.H. 1997. A simple temperature-based model for the chemistry of melt-water ponds in the Darwin Glacier area, 80 degrees S. In Lyons, W.B., Howard-Williams, C.&Hawes, I.,eds. Ecosystem processes in Antarctic ice-free landscapes. Rotterdam: Balkema, 197–206.Google Scholar
Torii, T., Nakaya, S., Matsubaya, O., Matsumoto, G.I., Masuda, N., Kawano, T.Murayama, H. 1989. Chemical characteristics of pond waters in the Labyrinth of southern Victoria Land, Antarctica. Hydrobiologia, 172, 255–264.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wait, B.R., Webster-Brown, J.G., Brown, K.L., Healy, M.Hawes, I. 2006. Chemistry and stratification of Antarctic metwater ponds I: coastal ponds near Bratina Island, McMurdo Ice Shelf. Antarctic Science, 18, 515–524.Google Scholar
Webster, J.G., Brown, K.L.Vincent, W.F. 1994. Geochemical processes affecting meltwater chemistry and the formation of saline ponds in the Victoria Valley and Bull Pass region, Antarctica. Hydrobiologia, 281, 171–186.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Webster-Brown, J., Gall, M., Gibson, J., Wood, S.Hawes, I. 2010. The biogeochemistry of meltwater habitats in the Darwin Glacier region (80°S), Victoria Land, Antarctica. Antarctic Science, 22, 646–661.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Welch, K.A., Neumann, K., McKnight, D.M., Fountain, A.G.Lyons, W.B. 2000. Chemistry and lake dynamics of the Taylor Valley lakes, Antarctica: the importance of long-term monitoring. In Davison, W., Howard-Williams, C.&Broady, P., eds. Antarctic ecosystems: models for wider ecological understanding. Christchurch: Caxton Press, 282–287.Google Scholar
Welch, K.A., Lyons, W.B., Graham, E., Neumann, K., Thomas, J.M.Mikesell, D. 1996. The determination of major element chemistry in terrestrial waters from Antarctica using ion chromatography. Journal of Chromatography, A739, 257–263.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Welch, K.A., Lyons, W.B., Whisner, C., Gardner, C.B., Gooseff, M.N., McKnight, D.M.Priscu, J.C. 2010. Spatial variations in the geochemistry of glacial meltwater streams in Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Antarctic Science, 22, 662–672.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wharton, R.A., McKay, C.P., Mancinelli, R.L.Simmons, G.M. 1987. Perennial N-2 supersaturation in an Antarctic lake. Nature, 325, 343–345.Google Scholar
Wilch, T.I., Denton, G.H., Lux, D.R.McIntosh, W.C. 1993. Limited Pliocene glacier extent and surface uplift in middle Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Geographiska Annaler, 75A, 331–351.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Witherow, R.A., Bertler, N.A.N., Welch, K.A., Lyons, W.B., Mayewski, P.A., Sneed, S.B., Nylen, T., Handley, M.J.Fountain, A. 2006. The aeolian flux of calcium, chloride and nitrate to the McMurdo Dry Valleys landscape: evidence from snow pit analysis. Antarctic Science, 18, 497–505.Google Scholar