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Victoria University Antarctic Research Expedition Science and Logistics Reports 1968-69: VUWAE 13

REPORT ON GEOLOGICAL PROJECT

page 5

REPORT ON GEOLOGICAL PROJECT

Initial Planning

A visit to the Boomerang Range was proposed as part of the geological programme for VUWAE during the 1967/68 season. It was intended that the party be moved from Ross Island to the Boomerang Range area by helicopter. This operation was cancelled when it was realised that the distances and elevations were beyond the operating capabilities of the available helicopters. The programme was postponed for one year. during the ANZAAS meeting at Christchurch in late January 1963, Professor R.H. Claris:, Dr A. Wright, Dr B.C. McKelvey and Dr P.N. Webb met to discuss the VUWAE geological programme for the 1968/69 season. Dr Wright was to have led the 1967/68 visit to the area. At this meeting it was decided that, subject to their obtaining leave, Messrs Webb and McKelvey would be leader and co-leader respectively of the party, and be responsible for organising the logistics and scientific programme of the expedition.

On 1st April details of the proposed party movements, the helicopter and Hercules support required, and the weights involved, were submitted to Antarctic Division. This plan was accepted by Antarctic Division and passed on to Deep Freeze headquarters later in the year.

During the winter and spring of 1968 Drs McKelvey and Webb prepared a number of geological memoranda which summarised earlier geological work in the area between the Boomerang and Olympus Ranges, and set forth a possible geological programme for this area. These were circulated to the other expedition members.

At the request of VUWAE the U.S. Navy VX-6 squadron flew a photo trimet run along the Boomerang Range from its southern tip northwards to the head of the Taylor Glacier in the spring of 1967. These and other photographs were studied in detail before proceeding south.

Discussions were held with Guyon Warren, New Zealand Geological Survey, Christchurch, prior to our departure. Mr Warren was a member page 6 of the Trans Antarctic Expedition Northern party, the only previous party to investigate the western Skelton Névé in any detail.

Field programme

For logistic reasons the geological programme was divided into two phases. The first phase involved visits to ranges and nunataks around the Skelton Névé. This was accomplished by using toboggans and sledges and included visits to Boomerang Range, Warren Range, Portal Mountain and Mt Metschel nunatak. The second phase was carried out by helicopter and took in visits to Table Mountain, Knobhead Mountain, Aztec Mountain, Maya Mountain, Kennar Valley, Mt Fleming, and the western Asgaard and Olympus Ranges. For the first phase the four man geological party was assisted by two members of the Italian Antarctic Expedition. During the second phase the party was reduced to the four geologists.

Itinerary

Nov. 26 Kohn, Gorton, Webb depart Wellington by ferry for Christchurch.
Nov. 27 Awaiting flight south.
Nov. 28 Awaiting flight south.
Nov. 29 Depart Christ church 10am, arrive Williams Field 7pm.
Nov. 30 Scott Base, logistic planning with U.S.A.R.P. and VX-6 at McMurdo.
Dec. 1 Scott Base, field preparations.
Dec. 2 Scott Base; Kohn, Gorton, Webb on seal census with Dr Stirling to Cape Royds, Cape Evans, and White Island.
Dec. 3 Scott Base, also flight to Byrd Station with recce to Boomerang Range area on return flight to McMurdo.
Dec. 4 Scott Base - field preparations.
Dec. 5 Scott Base - field preparations.
Dec. 6 Scott Base - am: recce flight to Boomerang Range area.
- pm: food dumps placed by helicopter in Taylor Glacier area by Webb and Kohn.
Dec. 7 Scott Base - food dumps placed in Wright Valley with helicopter by Webb and Gorton.
Dec. 8 Scott Base - field preparations.
Dec. 9 Scott Base - field preparations.page 7
Dec. 10 Scott Base - field preparations, McKelvey arrives from Caristchurch.
Dec. 11 Scott Base - field, preparations.
Dec. 12 Scott Base to Skelton Glacier by C130. Base camp established west of Névé Nunatak. Party comprising Webb, McKelvey, Kohn, Gorton, Mauri, and Ollier.
Dec. 13 Travel by toboggan from Névé Nunatak (Camp 1) to Alligator Peak region (Camp 2), northern Boomerang Range.
Dec. 14 Geological survey, Alligator Peak region, northern Boomerang Range.
Dec. 15 Geological survey, Alligator Peak region, northern Boomerang Range.
Dec. 16 Lay-up day at Camp 2 through bad weather.
Dec. 17 Travel toboggan from Camp 2 to middle Boomerang Range (Camp 3).
Dec. 18 )
Dec. 19 )
Dec. 20 ) Geological survey, middle Boomerang Range.
Dec. 21 )
Dec. 22 )
Dec. 23 Travel toboggan from Camp 2 (middle Boomerang Range) to Escalade (Camp 4).
Dec. 24 Geological survey around Escalade.
Dec. 25 Travel toboggan from Camp 4 (Escalade) to Allemand Peak region in northern Boomerang Range (Camp 5).
Dec. 26 Geological Survey of northern part of Warren Range from Camp 5.
Dec. 27 ) Geological survey of northern Boomerang Range between Allemand Peak and Alligator Peak.
Dec. 28 )
Dec. 29 Geological survey of Warren Range from Camp 5.
Dec. 30 Travel toboggan from Camp 5 (near Allemand Peak) to Camp 6 (western Skelton Névé) with geological visit to Mt Metschel nunatak. Travelled later on same day to Camp 7 at Portal Mountain.
Dec. 31 )
Jan. 1 ) Geological survey of Portal Mountain
Jan. 2 Travelled by toboggan from Portal Mountain to temporary cache on western Skelton Névé, re-visited Mt Metschel nunatak and returned to cache.
Jan. 3 Relayed all equipment from temporary cache back to Névé Nunatak depot (Camp 1).
Jan. 4 )
Jan. 5 )
Jan. 6 ) Awaiting return flight to Williams Field, McMurdo Sound.
Jan. 7 ) page 8
Jan. 8 Geological party returned from Névé Nunatak camp to Williams Field, McMurdo Sound by C130.
Jan. 9 Scott Base - reorganisation for second stage.
Jan. 10 Transport by helicopter: McKelvey and Kohn to Table Mountain; Webb and Gorton to Knobhead.
Jan. 11 )
Jan. 12 )
Jan. 13 ) Geological survey of Table Mountain and Knobhead areas.
Jan. 14 )
Jan. 15 )
Jan. 16 ) Transported by helicopter: Webb and Kohn to Beacon Valley; McKelvey, Gorton to Kennar Valley.
Jan. 17 )
Jan. 18 ) Geological survey of Beacon Valley and Kennar Valley.
Jan. 19 )
Jan. 20 ) Helicopter flight postponed through bad weather, remained in Beacon and Kennar Valley camps.
Jan. 21 )
Jan. 22 Transported by helicopter: Webb and Kohn from Beacon Valley to Mt Fleming; McKelvey and Gorton from Kennar Valley to Mt Fleming.
Jan. 23 )
Jan. 24 ) Geological survey of Mt Fleming region.
Jan. 25 Transported by helicopter: McKelvey and Gorton from Mt Fleming to Mt Circe (Olympus Range); Webb and Kohn from Mt Fleming to Mt Baldur (Asgaard Range).
Jan. 26 )
Jan. 27 )
Jan. 28 ) Geological survey in western Asgaard and Olympus langes.
Jan. 29 )
(Webb and Kohn arrive at Vanda Station).
Jan. 30 Geological survey in western Asgaard and Olympus Ranges.
Jan. 31 Lay-up day due to bad weather.
Feb. 1 )
Feb. 2 ) Helicopter flights postponed due to bad weather (McKelvey and Gorton at Mt Circe camp; Webb and Kohn at Vanda Station).
Feb. 3 )
Feb. 4 )
Feb. 5 )
Feb. 6 ) Party transported by helicopter from Mt Circe and Vanda Station to McMurdo, returned to Scott Base by track transport.
Feb. 7 ) McKelvey, ./ebb, Gorton, Kohn engaged in packing up operations.
Feb. 8 ) McKelvey departed Outer Williams in evening for Christchurch.page 9
Feb. 9 ) Kohn, Gorton and Webb engaged in packing up operations.
Feb. 10 ) Departed in evening from Outer Williams Field (8pm) for Christchurch.
Feb. 11 ) Gorton, Kohn, Webb arrived Christ church 5.30am, then through to Wellington, arriving approximately 8am. McKelvey departed Wellington Airport for Sydney at approximately 9am.

Division of Time

The geological party spent a total of 78 days in Antarctica. Division of time is as follows:
Transit Wellington-Antarctica and return 5 days
Spent at Scott Base 18 days
on geology 30 days
on ground (toboggan) shifts 6 days
on air shifts (Hercules and helicopter) 6 days
Days lost (weather, delayed planes, etc.) 13 days
78 days

The figure of 30 days spent on geology is actually calendar days. On most days the party split into units of two men, thereby achieving a figure nearer 60 field days. Of the 13 lost days, only two or three were due to weather conditions in our working area. The remainder were caused by bad weather at McMurdo Sound or servicing problems with aircraft. The quite high figure of 18 days spent at Scott Base was caused by factors beyond the control of the VUWAE party; for instance, McKelvey's plane was delayed in Christ church for five days and the programme set back by this amount. The time at Scott Base was, however, necessary for the complete overhaul of the toboggans.

Considering conditions, I feel that we made good use of our time and as a unit worked efficiently. Although these figures prove little, they may be of interest:
Days spent in logistic and other non-geological activities 48
Days spent in geological activities (30 days each by two men parties) 60 108
page 10

Thus about 60% of our time in Antarctica was spent on the geological programme.

Earlier Exploration on the Skelton Névé

The first reference to this area is probably that mentioned in Scott's The Voyage of the ‘discovery’. In the account of his return from the western journey onto the plateau in 1903 Scott notes in the entry for December 10 (Chapter XVIII), We had not been going for more than an hour in the afternoon, however, when Evansș sharp eye sighted the land, and soon some isolated nunataks appeared on both bows..... Later we rose several mountain peaks to the S.E., but cloud hangs so persistently about them that I cannot recognise anything". Two days later the party (Scott, Evans and Lashly) arrived back at Depot Nunatak. It seems likely that the peaks which they observed to the southeast would be the Lashly Mountains and some of the peaks in Warren Range, Boomerang Range and perhaps the Worcester Range.

A Map of the District near the ‘Discovery’ Winter Quarters (prepared by Lieut. Mulock, with geological information by Ferrar) was published by the National Antarctic Expedition in 1906. The area now referred to as the Skelton Névé is blank except for large lettering “Inland Ice”. Mulock shows two peaks to the south of Depot Nunatak, referred to as Lonely Peaks and Far West Mountain. Both had elevations in excess of 8,000 feet.

The topographic Map of McMurdo Sound Region (prepared by Debenham and published in 1923) which accompanied the British Antarctic Expedition 1910-13 (Terra Nova) reports does not improve on Mulock's map in the Skelton Névé area. Mulock's Lonely Peaks and Par West Mountains are referred to as Lashly Mountains on this map.

Although Scott and Shackleton's southern sledge journeys took them past the mouth of the Skelton Glacier (their Skelton Inlet) they were always at too low an elevation and too far out from the coast to gain any appreciation of the inland topography. However, had these early parties climbed one of the peaks on the southern side of the Taylor Glacier, they would have commanded an excellent view of the page 11 Skelton Névé and the peripheral ranges. As it was, a further forty-five years were to elapse before the area was to be penetrated and mapped.

After aerial reconnaissance of the major coastal glaciers during the early stages of the Trans Antarctic Expedition, Gunn selected the Skelton Glacier as the most favourable overland route between the McMurdo Sound and the Inland Plateau. In the following four summers this route was to become a major highway as the many tractor and dog teams plied their way to and from the plateau.

In late January and February 1957 Brooke, Ellis, Ayres, and Douglas sledged to the T.A.E, Plateau Depot by way of the Skelton Glacier, Skelton Névé and The Portal. Mulgrew also joined this party for a short period and climbed a small rock spire on the slopes of Portal Mountain as the party moved eastwards back across the Névé. Douglas and Brooke climbed Névé Nunatak during the same journey but no other rock climbs are recorded by this party. In October 1957, Miller and Marsh with dogs, and Hillary, Ellis, Balham and Mulgrew with tractors, ascended the Skelton Glacier and traversed the Skelton Névé on their way to the Plateau Depot. No mapping or geological work was undertaken by these groups. This was left until January 1958 when the T.A.E. Northern Party, consisting of Gunn, barren, Brooke and Douglas, arrived in the area after sledging down from the Mackay Glacier. This group spent about a week in the area, making geological visits to Escalade Peak, the Alligator Peak region, and Allemand Peak. Topographic survey stations were established on Escalade, Allemand Peak, and on another high unnamed peak further to the south in the Boomerang Range. Geological and topographic results of this visit to the area are contained in a bulletin and maps (scale 1:250,000) published by Gunn and Warren in 1962. Later in the summer of 1958, Sir Vivian Fuchs crossed the Skelton Névé on his way between Plateau Depot and Scott Base.

In the post T.A.E. era two further tractor traverse parties used this route. In November 1953 Bert Crary, accompanied by Dr T. Bat her ton, led a U.S.I.G.Y. seismic party through the area and on to the plateau, returning along the same path in January 1959. In October 1959 a U.S.A.R.P. traverse, which included New Zealander page 12 Arnold Heine, followed the same route to the plateau on their journey to northern Victoria Land. Since the spate of traffic between 1957-60 the area sea no further visitors until last summer's VUWAE 1968/69 expedition.

Three maps of this area have appeared in the last twelve years. The N.Z.M.S. 135 map was published by the Lands and Survey, Wellington, in June 1957. This relied heavily on topographic data from the early expeditions but contained new information on the Steel ton Glacier and Skelton Névé areas. The rough outlines of the Boomerang Range, Portal fountain, The Portal, Névé and Halfway Nunataks, and Clinker Bluff are indicated on this map, being based on survey data gathered in the early days of the Trans Antarctic Expedition.

In March 1961 the Lands and Survey, Wellington, published the provisional edition of N.S.H.S. 175/3 at a scale of 1:250,000.

The most recent map of the area is one published in 195 by the U.S. Geological Survey at a scale of 1:250,000 (Reconnaissance Series - Mt Harmsworth). This map was compiled in 1963 from aerial photos taken between 1956 and 1961.

Geographic setting of the Skelton Névé and Boomerang Range area

The Skelton Névé may be regarded as a large ice basin separated from the inland plateau on the west by a string of ranges and nunataks and bounded on the east by the Royal Society and Worcester Ranges. The major entry of ice occurs through The Portal and over adjacent ice falls; the major outlet through the Skelton Glacier to the Ross Ice Shelf. There are also direct connections to the Mulock and Ferrar Glaciers to the south and north respectively. The Skelton Névé is approximately fifty miles long in a NE-SW direction, and thirty miles wide in NW-SE direction. The névé attains its highest elevation of around 1600 to 2000 metres in the north (in the region of The Portal) but drops progressively westwards and southwestwards to about 1200 metres. The western and southwestern portion of the névé receives little snow or ice and shows all the signs of progressive stagnation and retreat, leaving a series of lateral moraines along the sides of page 13 emergent nunataks and ranges. An undulating relief is characteristic of the whole névé, although this is more pronounced close to rock exposures. The surface is for the most part hard rippled ice or hard sastrugi, soft snow surfaces being confined mostly to the eastern part of the névé. The Boomerang Range, Warren Range, and Portal Mountain are the major topographic features on the western border of the Skelton Névé. The eastern sides of these features are steep and rise to a height of several thousand feet above the névé surface. The eastern faces have been modified by small alpine glaciers, most of which have now retreated to leave wide aprons of terminal moraine. Excellent moraine-free rock exposures are available on the eastern faces of these ranges. The western faces take the form of low slopes |which are usually covered with ice or snow.

Recce flights and put-in

The first recce flight took place on 3rd December, at the tail end of a fuel supply flight to Byrd Station. Some two hours were spent over the Skelton Névé and Taylor Glacier area obtaining photographs and searching out a landing site.* Our original plan called for a landing as close to the Boomerang Range as possible but this was not to be. The recce flight (by C130 Hercules) revealed an impressive amount of undulating blue ice or sastrugi over most of the névé. A wheeled landing was hinted at but it was finally decided that a second recce flight was necessary. This took place on 6th December and was mainly devoted to low level runs and a number of trial touch-downs. The general impression was that a landing on the Skelton Neve was out of the question. To keep the project alive I immediately proposed that we be put in on the plateau where we knew that the T.A.E. Beaver aircraft had landed while stocking the Plateau Depot in 1957. And so on 12th December we left Williams Field with this plan in mind. Major Noll, realising that a plateau landing would add many days of page 14 unproductive travelling to our programme, was determined to make a landing on the Skelton Névé and spent a further hour in trial landings. Just as bumpy trial touch-and-go landings were becoming a monotonous habit, we hit a patch of snow, the props went into reverse pitch, the C130 jolted to a halt, we threw 7,000 pounds of supplies on to the snow in a suffocating atmosphere of pure kerosene fumes, and the plane raced off, covering us with powder snow and blowing packets of dehydrated meat and vegetables for miles. We had arrived at our base camp very suddenly, a few miles northwest of Névé Nunatak, on the eastern side of the Skelton Névé.

Geological Results

During the last decade investigations of Beacon Group rocks have been undertaken alone the entire length of Victoria Land. Naturally enough, the more accessible areas have received a great deal of attention, the more inaccessible have been barely scratched. The Beacon Group exposures in the type area west of McMurdo Sound have witnessed hundreds of investigators. Since 1907, when Ferrar's initial account of these rocks appeared, there have been more than forty papers published on the Beacon sediments of this area alone. The rocks of this area are now quite well known although many stratigraphic and nomenclatural problems remain. The basic stratigraphy is now known through most of Victoria Land and it is now possible to compare, contrast and correlate Beacon Group sediments over great distances. Nevertheless, outstanding differences between areas have emerged.

Important differences in the stratigraphy of the Beardmore and Taylor Glacier areas have been highlighted in recent syntheses. Most of these occur in pre-Permian sediments. For example, tillites were reported north and south of the Beardmore Glacier region but were apparently absent in the Taylor Glacier region; Devonian fish faunas were present just south of the Taylor Glacier area but had not been seen in the Beardmore Glacier region. Later, it became apparent that the stratigraphy of the Beardmore area could be traced as far north as the Darwin Glacier area, i.e. only 150 miles south of the classic Taylor Glacier area. Why then did the tillite of the Darwin Glacier page 15 not continue north to the Taylor area? Clearly, the answer to these and many other problems lay in the intervening area, i.e. the ranges bordering the Skelton Névé. As mentioned earlier, this area had been investigated by Gunn and Warren for about a week in 1953, but much remained to be done. With this in mind it was decided that VUWAE should investigate the critical Boomerang Range area during the 1968/69 season with the aim of
1.providing a more detailed stratigraphy for the lower Beacon Group sediments, i.e. the Devonian, Carboniferous and Permian.
2.improve if at all possible the most promising paleontological collections of fish made by barren in the Boomerang Range.

Despite the great number of Investigators who have visited the Wright-Taylor area, many critical problems had been overlooked or greatly simplified, and much work regained to be done. Therefore, the second phase of this year's geological programme included a re-evaluation of the Beacon Group in the type area. Having done this we were then in a better position to discuss stratigraphic problems between the Boomerang Range in the south and the Olympus Range in the north.

I do not intend to provide detailed results and discussion here. Results may be briefly summarised as follows:
1.Detailed sections, measured with Jacob staff, were prepared at
  • Boomerang Range (3 sections)
  • Warren Range (northern part of)
  • Mt Metschel nunatak
  • Portal Mountain
  • Table Mountain
  • Knobhead (three sections)
  • Aztec Mountain
  • Maya Mountain
  • Kennar Valley (two sections)
  • Mt Planing (two sections)
  • Mt Boreas
  • Mt Electra
  • Mt Aeolus
  • Mt Baldur
  • Mt Thor (two sections)
  • Mt Odin
page 16
2.Devonian fish collections were made at the following localities:
  • Boomerang Range
  • Warren Range (northern part)
  • Portal Mountain
  • Ht Metschel nunatak
  • Aztec Mountain
  • Kennar Valley
  • Mt Fleming

Fish material consists of fin-spines, plates, skull plates, jaws, teeth, etc. These occur in red and green Aztec Siltstone, usually confined to narrow horizons out reworked and disseminated in to higher levels. Concentrated fossil pavements are common at some localities.
3.Permian plant collections were noted and/or made at
  • Warren Range
  • Aztec Mountain
  • Maya Mountain
  • Mt Fleming
4.Devonian lycopod collections were made at lit Fleming.
5.? [sic]Carboniferous tillite was observed at many localities within the Boomerang Range and at barren Range, Mt Metschel nunatak, Aztec Mountain, Maya Mountain, Kennar Valley and Mt Fleming.
6.A distinct regional disconformity separates the top of the tillite (or where this is absent the top of the Aztec Siltstone) from the overlying Permian coal measures. This was traced from north to south over a distance of about seventy miles.
7.Special attention was paid to the lithostratigraphy of Devonian sediments, including a critical re-examination of the Odin Arkose, Boreas Subgreywacke, Beacon Heights Orthoquartzite, and Aztec Siltstone of Webb (1963), the New Mountain Sandstone of Hamilton and Hayes (1963) and McElroy (in press), the Pyramid Sandstone of Hamilton and Hayes (1963), the Terra Cotta Windy Gully member of Seller, Angino and Turner (1961) and the Altar Mountain Formation of McElroy (in press). Most of these formations have their page 17 stratotypes in the Taylor Glacier region: many are synonymous. It is hoped that as a result of this summer's work a more rational nomenclature can be evolved for the lower Beacon Group.
8.Large collections of rock specimens have been made for petrographic analysis. Rock types include arkoses, orthoquartzites, siltstones, claystones, etc.
9.Existing geological maps have been corrected and new data added.

Concluding Remarks

From my brief remarks on the geological results it should be apparent that the geological programme was a great success. The geological results will be published in either the N.Z.J. Geology and Geophysics or the Trans. Roy. Soc. N.Z. General summaries of the expedition will appear in the Polar Record (Cambridge), in Antarctic (N.Z. Antarctic Society), and in the Newsletter of the Geological Society of New Zealand.

* Robin Foubister, Leader Scott Base; Bill Lucy, Deputy Leader, Scott Base; and Graham Connell, Public Relations Officer, also participated in the reconnaissance flights. The latter acted as photographer during the flight.