Hydrological and sedimentological investigation of Radok Lake, Amery Oasis, East Antarctica

Radok Lake in Amery Oasis, East Antarctica, has a water depth of ca. 360 m, making it the deepest non-subglacial lake in Antarctica. Limnological analyses revealed that the lake had, despite a 3 m thick ice cover, a completely mixed water column during austral summer 2001/2002. High oxygen contents, low ion concentrations, and lack of planktonic diatoms throughout the water column indicate that Radok Lake is ultra-oligotrophic today.The late glacial and postglacial lake history is documented in a succession of glacial, glaciolimnic, and limnic sediments at different locations in the lake basin. The sediments record regional differences and past changes in allochthonous sediment supply and lake productivity. However, the lack of age control on these changes, due to extensive sediment redeposition and the lack of applicable dating methods, excluded Radok Lake sediments for advanced paleoenvironmental reconstructions.