AL - Topography of Arid Lands Flashcards
Define:
Aeolin Processes?
Wind Processes that change Arid Landscapes
Define:
Bajada?
A bunch of overlapping alluvial fans
(when you cannot see the difference between alluvial fans its a bajada)
Define:
Playa?
Shallow, Flat, dry-lakebeds
Salina:Heavy concentration of salt in the lake bed
Claypan: Heavy concentration of clay
Alluvial Fan?
Channelized water from high elevation goes from channelized to open. It hits surface loses all velocity and thus capacity and deposits all of its sediment (Competence and capacity is reduced)
Flow breaks into distributary channels
Define:
Abrasion?
Where?
Doesn’t create new landforms - it takes away from existing ones in a minor way
Occurs mostly within a few feet of the surface
Define:
Deflation?
Define:
Ventifact?
A rock formed by abrasion
*Usually shown becuase bottom of rock is eroded but top is only slightly eroded
Identify:
Blowout?
A depression formed by wind
Erosional Landform
Formed by Deflation
Identify:
Mesa & Scarp?
‘Tables & Cliffs’
You will find in four corners
Table top ‘ Most resistant’ material
Mesa = Table Top
Scarp = Vertical Cliffs
Happens through weathering, mass wasting, and fluvial erosion
Identify:
Basin & Ranges?
Caused by a series of normal faults that creates alternating mountains and valley
Basins: Flat areas between ranges
Upthrown Blocks: Ranges
Downthrown Blocks: Basins
Identify:
Piedmont Zone?
Transition zone between steep slopes and flat basin floor