Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-m8qmq Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-18T03:23:34.332Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

A dynamic physical model for soil temperature and water in Taylor Valley, Antarctica

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 May 2010

H.W. Hunt ,
A.G. Fountain ,
P.T. Doran  and
H. Basagic
H.W. Hunt*
Affiliation:
Natural Resource Ecology Laboratory, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
A.G. Fountain
Affiliation:
Department of Geology, Portland State University, Portland, OR 97201, USA
P.T. Doran
Affiliation:
Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60607, USA
H. Basagic
Affiliation:
Department of Geology, Portland State University, Portland, OR 97201, USA
*
billh@nrel.colostate.edu
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

We developed a simulation model for terrestrial sites including sensible heat exchange between the atmosphere and ground surface, inter- and intra-layer heat conduction by rock and soil, and shortwave and longwave radiation. Water fluxes included snowmelt, freezing/thawing of soil water, soil capillary flow, and vapour flows among atmosphere, soil, and snow. The model accounted for 96–99% of variation in soil temperature data. No long-term temporal trends in soil temperature were apparent. Soil water vapour concentration in thawed surface soil in summer often was higher than in frozen deeper soils, leading to downward vapour fluxes. Katabatic winds caused a reversal of the usual winter pattern of upward vapour fluxes. The model exhibited a steady state depth distribution of soil water due to vapour flows and in the absence of capillary flows below the top 0.5 cm soil layer. Beginning with a completely saturated soil profile, soil water was lost rapidly, and within a few hundred years approached a steady state characterized by dry soil (< 0.5% gravimetric) down to one metre depth and saturated soil below that. In contrast, it took 42 000 years to approach steady state beginning from a completely dry initial condition.

Keywords

capillary waterlongwave radiationmatric potentialpermafrostsolar radiationwater vapour
Type
Earth Sciences
Information
Antarctic Science , Volume 22 , Issue 4 , August 2010 , pp. 419 - 434
Copyright
Copyright © Antarctic Science Ltd 2010

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

Beyer, L., Bockheim, J.G., Campbell, I.B.Claridge, G.G.C. 1999. Genesis, properties and sensitivity of Antarctic gelisols. Antarctic Science, 11, 387–398.Google Scholar
Buchan, G.D. 1991. Soil temperature regime. In Smith, K.A. & Mullins, C.E., eds. Soil analysis physical methods. New York: Marcel Dekker, 551–612.Google Scholar
Campbell, D.I., MacCulloch, R.J.L.Campbell, I.B. 1997a. Thermal regimes of some soils in the McMurdo Sound region, Antarctica. In Lyons, W.B., Howard-Williams, C. & Hawes, I., eds. Ecosystem processes in Antarctic ice-free landscapes. Rotterdam: Balkema, 45–55.Google Scholar
Campbell, I.B. 2003. Soil characteristics at a long-term ecological research site in Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Australian Journal of Soil Research, 41, 351–364.Google Scholar
Campbell, I.B.Claridge, G.G.C. 2006. Permafrost properties, patterns and processes in the Transantarctic Mountains region. Permafrost and Periglacial Processes, 17, 215–232.Google Scholar
Campbell, I.B., Claridge, G.G.C., Balks, M.R.Campbell, D.I. 1997b. Moisture content in soils of the McMurdo Sound and Dry Valley region of Antarctica. In Lyons, W.B., Howard-Williams, C. & Hawes, I., eds. Ecosystem processes in Antarctic ice-free landscapes. Rotterdam: A.A. Balkema, 61–76.Google Scholar
Claridge, G.G.C., Campbell, I.B.Balks, M.R. 1999. Movement of salts in Antarctic soils: experiments using lithium chloride. Permafrost and Periglacial Processes, 10, 223–233.3.0.CO;2-R>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clauser, C.Huenges, E. 1995. Thermal conductivity of rocks and minerals. In Ahrens, T.J., ed. Rock physics and phase relations - a handbook of physical constants. Washington, DC: American Geophysical Union, 105–126.Google Scholar
Dana, G.L., Wharton, R.A. JrDubayah, R. 1998. Solar radiation in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Antarctic Research Series, 72, 39–64.Google Scholar
Dixon, W.J. 1985. BMDP statistical software. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 734 pp.Google Scholar
Doran, P.T., Dana, G.L., Hastings, J.T.Wharton, R.A. Jr 1995. McMurdo Dry Valleys Long Term Ecological Research (LTER): LTER automatic weather network (LAWN). Antarctic Journal of the United States, 30 (5), 276–280.Google Scholar
Doran, P.T., McKay, C.P., Clow, G.D., Dana, G.L., Fountain, A.G., Nylen, T.Lyons, W.B. 2002a. Valley floor climate observations from the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica, 1986–2000. Journal of Geophysical Research, 107, 10.1029/2001JD002045.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Doran, P.T., Priscu, J.C., Lyons, W.B., Walsh, J.E., Fountain, A.G., McKnight, D.M., Moorhead, D.L., Virginia, R.A., Wall, D.H., Clow, G.D., Fritsen, C.H., McKay, C.P.Parsons, A.N. 2002b. Antarctic climate cooling and terrestrial ecosystem response. Nature, 415, 517–520.Google Scholar
Fetter, C.W. 1994. Applied hydrogeology. New York: Macmillan College Publishing, 691 pp.Google Scholar
French, H.M.Guglielmin, M. 2000. Frozen ground phenomena in the vicinity of Terra Nova Bay, northern Victoria Land, Antarctica: a preliminary report. Geografiska Annaler, 82A, 513–526.Google Scholar
Gooseff, M.N., McKnight, D.M., Runkel, R.L.Vaughn, B.H. 2003. Determining long time-scale hyporheic flow paths in Antarctic streams. Hydrological Processes, 17, 1691–1710.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hagedorn, B., Sletten, R.S.Hallet, B. 2007. Sublimation and ice condensation in hyperarid soils: modelling results using field data from Victoria Valley, Antarctica. Journal of Geophysical Research, 112, 10.1029/2006JF000580.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harris, K.J., Carey, A.E., Lyons, W.B., Welch, K.A.Fountain, A.G. 2007. Solute and isotope geochemistry of subsurface ice melt seeps in Taylor Valley, Antarctica. Geological Society of America Bulletin, 119, 548–555.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hindmarsh, R.C.A., van der Wateren, F.M.Verbers, A.L.L.M. 1998. Sublimation of ice through sediment in Beacon Valley, Antarctica. Geografiska Annaler, 80A, 3–4.Google Scholar
Hori, M., Aoki, T., Tanikawa, T., Motoyoshi, H., Hachikubo, A., Sugiura, K., Yasunari, T.J., Eide, H., Storvold, R., Nakajima, Y.Takahashi, F. 2006. In-situ measured spectral directional emissivity of snow and ice in the 8–14 μm atmospheric window. Remote Sensing of Environment, 100, 486–502.Google Scholar
Hunt, H.W., Antle, J.M.Paustian, K. 2003. False determinations of chaos in short noisy time series. Physica D, 180, 115–127.Google Scholar
Hunt, H.W., Treonis, A.M., Wall, D.H.Virginia, R.A. 2007. A mathematical model for variation in water retention curves among sandy soils. Antarctic Science, 19, 427–436.Google Scholar
Jaynes, D.B.Tyler, E.J. 1984. Using soil physical properties to estimate hydraulic conductivity. Soil Science, 138, 298–305.Google Scholar
Kersten, M.S. 1949. Thermal properties of soils. University of Minnesota Engineering Experiment Station Bulletin, No. 28, 227 pp.Google Scholar
Kondo, J., Saigusa, N.Sato, T. 1990. A parameterization of evaporation from bare soil surfaces. Journal of Applied Meteorology, 29, 385–389.Google Scholar
Kowalewski, D.E., Marchant, D.R., Levy, J.S.Head, J.W. 2006. Quantifying low rates of summertime sublimation for buried glacier ice in Beacon Valley, Antarctica. Antarctic Science, 18, 421–428.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.M.Tremper, C.M. 2005. Groundwater seeps in Taylor Valley Antarctica: an example of a subsurface melt event. Annals of Glaciology, 40, 200–206.Google Scholar
Mahrt, L.Ek, M. 1984. The influence of atmospheric stability on potential evaporation. Journal of Climate and Applied Meteorology, 23, 222–234.Google Scholar
Marchant, D.R., Lewis, A.R., Phillips, W.M., Moore, E.J., Souchez, R.A., Denton, G.H., Sugden, D.E., Potter, N. JrLandis, G.P. 2002. Formation of patterned ground and sublimation till over Miocene glacier ice in Beacon Valley, southern Victoria Land, Antarctica. Geographical Society of America Bulletin, 6, 718–730.2.0.CO;2>CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Matthias, A.D. 1990. Simulation of daily energy budget and mean soil temperatures at an arid site. Theoretical and Applied Climatology, 42, 3–17.Google Scholar
McKay, C.P., Mellon, M.T.Friedmann, E.I. 1998. Soil temperatures and stability of ice-cemented ground in the McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica. Antarctic Science, 10, 31–38.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McKay, C.P., Andersen, D.T., Pollard, W.H., Heldmann, J.L., Doran, P.T., Fritsen, C.H.Priscu, J.C. 2005. Polar lakes, streams, and springs as analogues for the hydrological cycle on Mars. In Tokano, T., ed. Water on Mars and life. Berlin: Springer, 219–233.Google Scholar
Moorhead, D.L., Wall, D.H., Virginia, R.A.Parsons, A.N. 2002. Distribution and life-cycle of Scottnema lindsayae (Nematoda) in Antarctic soils: a modelling analysis of temperature responses. Polar Biology, 25, 118–125.Google Scholar
Murray, F.W. 1967. On the computation of saturation vapour pressure. Journal of Applied Meteorology, 6, 203–204.Google Scholar
Ng, F., Hallet, B., Sletten, R.S.Stone, J.O. 2005. Fast-growing till over ancient ice in Beacon Valley, Antarctica. Geology, 33, 121–124.Google Scholar
Pringle, D.J., Dickinson, W.W., Trodahl, H.J.Pyne, A.R. 2003. Depth and seasonal variations in the thermal properties of Antarctic Dry Valley permafrost from temperature time series analysis. Journal of Geophysical Research, 108, 10.1029/2002JB002364.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Priscu, J.C. 1999. Life in the valley of the “dead”. Bioscience, 49, 959.Google Scholar
Priscu, J.C.Christner, B.C. 2004. Earth’s icy biosphere. In Bull, A.T., ed. Microbial diversity and bioprospecting. Washington, DC: American Society for Microbiology, 130–145.Google Scholar
Rawls, W.J., Gimenez, D.Groosman, R. 1998. Use of soil texture, bulk density and slope of the water retention curve to predict saturated hydraulic conductivity. Transactions of the American Society of Agricultural Engineers, 41, 983–988.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schäfer, J.M., Baur, H., Denton, G.H., Ivy-Ochs, S., Marchant, D.R., Schlüchter, C.Wieler, R. 2000. The oldest ice on earth in Beacon Valley, Antarctica: new evidence from surface exposure dating. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 179, 91–99.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schorghofer, N. 2005. A physical mechanism for long-term survival of ground ice in Beacon Valley, Antarctica. Geophysical Research Letters, 32, 10.1029/2005GL023881.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Schorghofer, N.Aharonson, O. 2005. Stability and exchange of subsurface ice on Mars. Journal of Geophysical Research, 110, 10.1029/2004JE002350.Google Scholar
Sugden, D.E., Marchant, D.R., Potter, N. Jr, Souchez, R.A., Denton, G.H., Swisher, C.C. IIITison, J.-L. 1995. Preservation of Miocene glacier ice in East Antarctica. Nature, 376, 412–414.Google Scholar
Thompson, D.C., Craig, R.M.F.Bromley, A.M. 1971. Climate and surface heat balance in an Antarctic dry valley. New Zealand Journal of Science, 14, 245–251.Google Scholar
Virginia, R.A.Wall, D.H. 1999. How soils structure communities in the Antarctic Dry Valleys. BioScience, 49, 973–983.CrossRefGoogle Scholar