TOWNGRID1 (2014) low-res

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We are conducting research on the erosional and ecological processes occurring within deflation patches that cover 22% of the local landscape in Kangerlussuaq, West Greenland during June/July 2014. These patches are formed by katabatic winds off the Greenland Ice Sheet removing fine-grained loess soil and exposing glacial till. As the patch edge advances, it cuts under the soil and vegetation, causing them to be undercut. Within these patches, a biological soil crust develops, which slows down future erosion and aids in soil recovery. Our team consists of researchers from Dartmouth, including Ruth Heindel from Earth Sciences, Ross Virginia from Arctic Studies and Environmental Studies, Jonathan Chipman from Geography and Earth Sciences, Becca Novello, and Phoebe Racine. For more information on our research, visit http://sites.dartmouth.edu/rheindel. Our study was published in the Annals of the Association of American Geographers under the title "The Spatial Distribution and Ecological Impacts of Aeolian Soil Erosion in Kangerlussuaq, West Greenland" (Heindel, R., Chipman, J., Virginia, R., 2015).