Week 7: Freshwater Environments

Lecture 1: Lakes I (Dr John Gibson)
What historical information can we get from Antarctic lakes? - Short, medium and long-term records. Examples including ice thickness, water level. Sediment studies: Basic sedimentary processes - taphonomy, collection of sediments, what type of studies are done, and what type of information has been recovered (all with examples), record of the ice margin, changes in water level salinity, emergence of marine-derived lakes, changes in lake ecology - related to climate and colonization processes.

Lecture 2: Lakes ll (Dr John Gibson)
What is a lake? Why are they important? What is the life history of a lake? The lake as an integrator for processes occurring in the drainage basin. Comparison of lakes in boreal zone of the northern hemisphere to the generally lake-poor Southern hemisphere. Antarctic lakes: Distribution, types - glacially-fed freshwater to saline meromictic to subglacial. Why are they important ecologically - liquid water throughout the year. What lives in Antarctic lakes?

Tutorial: Excursion to Australian Antarctic Division in mid-semester break and (if possible) tour of the Antarctic research vessel, Aurora Australis. Date TBA