Published in:
Geophysical Research Letters, 33 (2006) 22
Language:
English
DOI:
10.1029/2006gl027871
ISSN:
1944-8007;
0094-8276
Origination:
Footnote:
Description:
We found evidence for highly periodic dunes in a near‐coastal area of Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica. Analysis of accumulation patterns, derived from ground‐penetrating radar (GPR) internal layering, and GPS‐based characteristics of surface topography, by means of auto‐ and cross‐covariance, indicate quasi‐harmonic oscillations of surface undulations, surface slope, and accumulation. The dunes occur at an elevation range of 1000–1350 m with the dominant wavelength of 5 km and undulations of ∼10 m. Accumulation and slope are anticorrelated at zero lag, with a mean annual accumulation of some 140 kg m−2 yr−1 and variations on the order of ±100 kg m−2 yr−1. Our findings have implications for studies aiming at the mass balance of coastal areas in Antarctica.