Abstract
Only 0.35 %, or 45,000 km2, of Antarctica is ice-free, with the largest areas in the Transantarctic Mountains (25,700 km2) and the Antarctic Peninsula (10,000 km2). Antarctica is divided by the Transantarctic Mountains into what is commonly known as East Antarctica, which contains the massive East Antarctic ice sheet (EAIS) over bedrock, and West Antarctica, which contains the marine-based West Antarctic ice sheet (WAIS). This chapter addresses the climate, biota (plants and animals), and bedrock and surficial geology of Antarctica. The Antarctic soils database contains more than 2,300 pedons. The history of soil classification from genetic systems to those base on soil properties is considered.
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Bockheim, J.G. (2015). Soil-Forming Factors in Antarctica. In: Bockheim, J. (eds) The Soils of Antarctica. World Soils Book Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-05497-1_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-05497-1_2
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