Hydrochemistry of the meltwater streams on Fildes Peninsula, King George Island, Antarctica

Abstract

King George Island, situated in the South Shetland Islands archipelago, is one of the most visited sites in Antarctica. Antarctica attracts much attention because it is one of the most sensitive areas under the influence of global warming. To understand its hydrochemistry characteristics, we collected various types of water samples, including samples from streams, meltwaters, ground waters, snow and ice from around the Great Wall Station, Fildes Peninsula, King George Island, from January to February, 2015. Major ions, alkalinities, silicate, pH, dissolved oxygen, temperature, and electric conductivities were measured. Several approaches were applied to identify processes that affect the hydrochemistry on Fildes Peninsula, including ternary diagrams, principal components analysis and cluster analysis. Our data suggest that atmospheric seasalt deposition is the main factor controlling the hydrochemistry on Fildes Peninsula. After atmospheric influences were corrected for seasalt, we defined the weathering of local rocks to be another important factor on the Peninsula’s hydrochemistry. Processes such as Ca dissolution from the Ca-bearing basalt, Si loss through secondary mineralization and biological uptake influence the chemical composition of runoffs on the peninsula. Cluster analysis identified 4 groups of streams based on their hydrochemical features, which reflect their original weathering characters under icecap and the combined effects with melt snow, biological activity and the anthropogenic input.