Dataset for Physical, chemical, and microbial feedbacks controlling brine geochemistry and lake morphology in polyextreme salar environments
Description
In this study, we evaluated the relationship between saline lake morphology (depth, area, slope gradient), and brine chemistry and stratification (elemental composition, electrical conductivity, pH, stable isotopes of hydrogen and oxygen) to test the hypothesis that physical, chemical, and microbial feedbacks produce predictable trends in saline lake substrate (microbial vs crystalline) in the Puquios of the Salar de Llamara. Data tables shared here correspond to Table S1, which presents measurements for the perimeter, area, and perimeter-over-area calculations for lakes and ponds in the Salar de Llamara, and Table S2, which reports the location, depth (surface or bottom) and elemental composition of the water samples analyzed in this study. Calculations of for the Chemical Index of Alteration, Ca/Mg, and Ca/Alkalinity ratios are also presented. Data presented in Table S1 were collected by manual mapping of drone imagery, and data in Table S2 contain both in situ measurements collected with a Hanna Instruments 9829 multimeter, and laboratory based measurements conducted by ANAM Analisis Ambientales in Santiago, Chile.