Slope processes connected with snow patches in semi-arid ice-free areas of James Ross Island, Antarctic Peninsula

Abstract In this study, we aim to describe geomorphological processes related to snow patches in the ice-free environment of James Ross Island located in Maritime Antarctica. The area of interest for this study is situated on Cape Lachman and consists of an approximately 1500 m long and 300 m wide oval-shaped depression with two shallow lakes at the bottom. Due to the varied aspect of the slopes, large snow accumulations form in the southern part of the depression, where the slopes exhibit a lee aspect towards the prevailing southwestern wind. Within the semi-arid conditions of James Ross Island, the redistribution of snow by wind and the availability of moisture from the melting snow play a key role in shaping of the landscape. Via repeated UAV surveys, field campaigns and construction of a digital terrain model of the study area, we were able to identify the specific landforms that have been shaped by nival processes, such as winnowing of the fine material and its subsequent transport downslope; and mass-wasting, resulting from slumping of the meltwater-saturated active layer. We developed a three-step model of landscape evolution throughout the Holocene, which helps to explain how snow-related processes contribute to landscape shaping within the ice-free environment of James Ross Island.