SOIL TEMPERATURE REGIMES AND MICROTOPOGRAPHIC CONTRASTS, BAFFIN ISLAND, N.W.T., CANADA

Soil temperature regimes were studied on a southwest-facing slope at the southern end of Pangnirtung Pass on Cumberland Peninsula, Baffin Island, N.W.T., Canada. Soil temperatures at several depths were recorded with data loggers at two study plots, which are characterized by different microtopography and soil properties. In order to study the relationship of soil temperature to microtopography, one plot was established on nearlevel ground while the other plot was divided into two microsites, a small mound and an adjacent trough. The calculated ranges for various soil temperature parameters at the study plots show similar patterns during the study period. At the plot where the effect of microtopography on soil temperature was studied, differences between soil temperatures were most evident when temperatures approached their extremes. In general, vegetation cover and thickness of the surface organic layer are the major factors affecting soil temperatures and, therefore, depth of the active layer.