Reviews: Antarctic Map Folio Series. Folio 7: Glaciers of the Antarctic; Folio 8: Climatology of the Surface Environment

Summary

The article reviews Folios 7 and 8 of the American Geographical Society’s Antarctic Map Folio Series. John H. Mercer’s Glaciers of the Antarctic (Folio 7) summarizes selected glaciers in Antarctica and outlying islands through text and small-scale maps, excluding the main ice sheet. Charles Swithinbank finds the text useful but criticizes the maps’ limited and inconsistent glacier selection, omissions, mixed French and English place-names, inaccurate depiction of ice cover, and lack of relief. He judges the Soviet Atlas of the Antarctic (1966) superior in its depiction of glaciers and ice-free areas and argues that relevant source maps were available. Climatology of the Surface Environment (Folio 8) presents mapped and tabulated surface-climate information south of 30°S. Its reviewer questions the choice of representative seasonal months, notes altitude effects on temperature patterns and insufficient ocean data, and criticizes inconsistent temperature units. The wind plates show katabatic winds and mid-latitude westerlies; cloud distributions differ considerably between oceanic and polar stations. The reviewer doubts the blowing-snow figures, citing station discrepancies and meteorological coding difficulties. Despite insufficient documentation of data and literature, the reviewer considers Folio 8 a reasonably priced, convenient reference, with the blowing-snow plate a significant exception to its generally satisfactory compilation.