Tracking sediment provenance and erosional evolution of the western Greater Caucasus

Auteur(s) et Affiliation(s)



Description :
This paper investigates landscape characteristics and sediment composition in the western Greater Caucasus by using multiple methods at different timescales. Areas of active recent uplift are assessed by quantitative geomorphological techniques (digital elevation model analysis of stream profiles and their deviation from equilibrium) and compared with regions of rapid exhumation over longer time intervals as previously determined by fission-track and cosmogenic-nuclide analyses. Complementary information from petrographic and heavy-mineral analyses of modern sands and ancient sandstones is used to evaluate erosion integrated throughout the history of the orogen. It is suggested that the bedrock–channel network can reveal much of the evolution of tectonically active landscapes, and implies that the controls on channel gradient ultimately dictate the topography and the relief along the Greater Caucasus. The results indicate westward decreasing rates of erosional unroofing from the central part of the range to the Black Sea.


Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Earth surface processes and landforms, issn : 0197-9337, 2014, vol. 39, n°. 8, p. 1101-1114, nombre de pages : 14, Références bibliographiques : 2 p.

Date :
2014

Editeur :
Pays édition : Royaume-Uni, Chichester, Wiley