Published by the American Geophysical Union as part of the Antarctic Research Series, Volume 57. Lakes of the dry valley region near McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, which are perennially ice-covered (approximately 4 m thick) and contain only microorganisms in the plankton, present unique systems for studies in hydrologic optics. Profiles of the flux and spectral distribution of photosynthetically available radiation (400-700 nm) and the optical properties of suspended particulate material were measured for Lake Bonney and Lake Fryxell.

A comprehensive single-authored book to introduce students and researchers to the marine geology of the Antarctic.

There has lately been a growth in the number and level of studies of contourite deposits. Most recent studies of contourites have two major lines of interest. One, propelled by the oil industry's continuous move into increasingly deep waters, concerns their economic significance. The other involves the stratigraphic/ palaeoceanographic record of ocean circulation changes imprinted on contourite deposits that can be a key to understanding better the climate-ocean connection. The application of many different theoretical, experimental and empirical resources provided by geophysics, sedimentology, geochemistry, petrology, scale modeling and field geology are used in the 16 papers of this volume, proposing answers to those two main aspects. The papers are subdivided into two major categories (economic interest and stratigraphic/palaeoceanographic significance), with case studies ranging from well-documented drifts to new examples of modern and fossil series, involving a large diversity of geographic and physiographic scenarios worldwide