EARTH 10 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Kerguelen Islands, Mcmurdo Station, Balleny Islands
Document Summary
Importance: biological refugia and history of exploration. True subaa islands are south of polar front, many tied due to ^^ Humans: intl. effort, aircraft, (generally no) tourism. Research bases: 40+ permanent, 1 or 2 years each, 2000+ scientists and staff annually. Mcmurdo station can have up to 1500 ppl. during height of summer. Ex: usa"s nathaniel b. palmer ship?, amundson-scott south pole station, Can"t interact with wildlife to change behavior. Birds: 4 in subantarctic (1 insectivore) and 3 freshwater ducks; 2 scavenging sheathbills (1 in marine aa) Diatom (plankton, base of food chain) makes ice appear darker; used to see past patterns, photosynthetic. Birds: skua, petrel, gulls, albatross, cormorants, terns. Deeper than most continental shelves (200-1200 m deep vs. 0-200 m) Fore-deepened and deep b/c isostatic depression and glacial erosion. Continental rise apron and submarine fans, tubidites. Isostasy : condition where lithosphere floats on asthenosphere like ice floats on water.
