Periodic surface features in coastal East Antarctica

We found evidence for highly periodic dunes in a near-coastal area of Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica. Analysis of accumulation patterns, derived from ground-penetrating radar (GPR) internal layering, and GPS-based characteristics of surface topography, by means of auto- and cross-covariance, indicate quasi-harmonic oscillations of surface undulations, surface slope, and accumulation. The dunes occur at an elevation range of 1000 - 1350 m with the dominant wavelength of 5 km and undulations of similar to 10 m. Accumulation and slope are anticorrelated at zero lag, with a mean annual accumulation of some 140 kg m(-2) yr(-1) and variations on the order of +/- 100 kg m(-2) yr(-1). Our findings have implications for studies aiming at the mass balance of coastal areas in Antarctica.