Landforms and Quaternary climatic change in The geomorphology of Southern Africa.
The review article examines the evidence for environmental change in the geomorphological features of southern Africa and examines the nature and chronology of those changes in the Quaternary.
Arid geomorphology : investigating past, present and future changes
Arid area ; Bibliography ; Dating ; Desertification ; Forecast ; Geomorphology ; Global change ; Model ; Palaeo-environment ; Research ; Thermoluminescence ; Years 2000-2009
The A. focuses on certain pervasive, emerging, or overarching themes in arid geomorphological research, with arid defined broadly to include hyper-arid, semi-arid and dry-subhumid regions as well. 3 themes are studied : 1) reconstructing past
changes : chronologies of arid landscape development (luminescence dating); 2) assessing present changes : the relationship between modelling and field observations; 3) predicting future changes : arid landscape response to twenty-first-century
Action anthropique ; Cartographie ; Changement global ; Niveau marin ; Pays-Bas ; Prévision ; Variation climatique
Cartography;Mapping ; Climatic variation ; Forecast;Prediction ; Global change ; Human impact ; Netherlands (The) ; Sea level
The A. summarizes the effects of climatic changes in the past, indicates the different types of man-induced climatic changes and discusses the (potential) effects of these changes on the worldwide average sea-level. Thereafter a summary
of the progress in geomorphological survey and mapping is presented with The Netherlands serving as an example. Finally some remarks are made on useful geomorphological data : survey and mapping can contribute in encountering the problems caused by sea-level rise
A review of recent geomorphological contributions studying environmental changes in deserts. In particular, it can not be ignored that geomorphologists are able to make valuable inputs to the study and understanding of recent changes in desert
Geomorphological events and landform change. The Centenary Lecture to the Department of Geography, University of Heidelberg
Catastrophe ; Concept ; Earth surface processes ; French school ; Geographic school ; Geomorphology ; Historical geography ; Landscape ; Theory
This paper discusses some of the implications of actualistic and evolutionary theory which emphasises slow steady change to landscapes toward a belief that landscapes can also change suddenly from one (stable?) state to another. For the A., C. LYELL
was a precursor and has considerable importance for geomorphology, even though he exaggerated the effect of the sea, and underestimated valley formation to an inhibiting degree. The A. then studies the nature of event geomorphology (the nature of processes, event
Geomorphological applications of cosmogenic isotope analysis
Bibliography ; Dating ; Erosion rate ; Geochemistry ; Geomorphology ; Isotope analysis ; Mass movement ; Weathering
The AA. focus on the geomorphological applications of in situ-produced cosmogenic isotope analysis. The past decade has seen a rapid growth in applications of cosmogenic isotope analysis to a wide range of geomorphological problems
, and the technique is now playing a major role in dating and quantifying rates of landscape changes over timescales of thousands to several millions of years.
Glacial erosion ; Glacial features ; Glacier ; Glaciology ; Global change ; Ice sheet;Ice cap;Inlandsis ; Modelling ; Numerical model
The first section of this paper provides a very brief overview of the main trends in Anglo-American glacial geomorphology from 1900 to the present. The A. then discusses more detail work on process modeling of glacial landform development, an area
which he considers to be one of the major research frontiers in glacial geomorphology. This provides a basis for exploring what research techniques and priorities in glacial geomorphology might be like in the twenty-first century.
It is suggested that the global sustainability debate would benefit from more active participation by geomorphologists and that geomorphology would itself benefit by embracing sustainable development research more explicitly. Agenda 21's action
programs, comprising 40 priority research areas, is seen to require geomorphological expertise; it is also argued that solutions to the identified problems can only be anticipated through interdisciplinary collaboration.
In the last two decades concern with global environmental change has brought the role of anthropogeomorphology into sharper focus. Global warming, if it occurs, will have important implications for many geomorphological processes and phenomena
as a result of the direct effects of warming, as a consequence of other related climatic changes (e.g. précipitation change) and as a result of climatically moderated changes in major geomorphologically significant variables (e.g. vegetation cover
). Geomorphologists need, inter alia, to establish long-term study sites that will generate base-line data, to monitor the location and rate of change using sequential cartographic and remote sensing materials, to determine information on natural background levels
Flood ; Fluvial processes ; Geochemistry ; Geomorphology ; Global change ; Human impact ; Precipitation ; Slope dynamics ; Soil erosion ; Tropical rain forest ; Tropical zone ; Weather type
Action anthropique ; Changement global ; Crue ; Dynamique de versant ; Erosion des sols ; Fluviatile ; Forêt tropicale ; Géochimie ; Géomorphologie ; Précipitation ; Type de temps ; Zone intertropicale
and sedimentation in the rainforest, denudation efficiency in the humid tropics, the Quaternary evolution and changes, and the applied side of tropical geomorphology.
It is debatable whether tropical geomorphology is intrinsically different from the geomorphology of other places. This paper primarily examines the research themes of the last ten years or so, identifies the major trends, and attempts to predict
Geomorphological conservation and public policy in England : a geomorphological critique of English Nature's Natural Areas approach
England ; Environment ; Environmental management ; Geomorphology ; Land use ; Landscape dynamics ; Nature reserve ; United Kingdom ; Web site
Local Area Teams, a more detailed approach to geomorphological description of the Natural Areas which recognizes landform evolution, landform character and sensititvity to change, and improved links between geomorphology and the land-use planning system.
This paper reviews the geomorphological content of the 120 Natural Area Profiles, eight regional summaries and the relevant pages of the English Nature web site. It concludes that wildlife conservation, which dominates the profiles, has fully
grasped the principles of conservation in the wider countryside, but geomorphological conservation has largely missed the opportunities provided. What is needed is a strengthening of geomorphological/Quaternary conservation with English Nature and its
Late Quaternary environmental changes in the Karoo, South Africa in Geomorphological studies in Southern Africa.
The paper presents an overview of environmental changes during the Quaternary of the Karoo : and examines new palynological evidence from the Nuweveldberg region.
Experimental geomorphology and landscape ecosystem changes (proceedings memorial symposium Prof. Jan De Ploey)
Soil erosion in developing countries: where geomorphology fears to tread!
Applied geomorphology ; Concept ; Developing countries ; Forecast ; Model ; Rill wash ; Soil erosion
Geomorphology claims an expertise in the study of soil erosion and the development of conservation solutions. As applied scientists, geomorphologists could assist their cause greatly by providing quality information on erosion process rates
and their impact in a timely and applicable way. Descrpitive and predictive models hold scope for extending geomorphological information beyond empirical confines. Examples throughout the paper are drawn from projects in South Asia, South America and southern
The title of this symposium represented in this special issue, properly conveys the application of information from geology to the concerns of society. The A. has chosen to discuss geomorphology at play, not to contrast it with work, but rather
to point out what it sometimes called play. Each of the papers represents a contribution to the better utilization and management of natural resources based on an understanding of the geomorphology of the system, including its form and processes.
Sediments and dynamical processes in Geomorphology of the Wadden Sea area, final report of the section Geomorphology of the Wadden Sea Working Group.
The dynamical processes in the Wadden Sea area are extremely strong, manifold, as well as periodically and aperiodically changing. Consequently sediment is moved very often and the geomorphological pattern of forms is changing continuously. (From
This paper represents the first attempt to divide the surface geomorphology of Kuwait into four major geomorphic zones: a) the coastal zone; b) the wadis and ridges zone; c) the lowland zone; and d) the dune fields zone. Tectonics as well as climate
changes play a major role in the distribution and evolution of land form features. Paleosols and fresh water aquifers reflect wetter climate.
The articles in this issue emphasize two primary themes in coastal geomorphology : nearshore processes and landform changes. The articles focused on process chiefly examine the sources and actions of energy that is dissipated by waves
in the nearshore. A primary task in process geomorphology is modeling and predicting sediment transport. When deterministic models yield unsatisfactory results, empirical and semiempirical models are frequently substituded.
Four geomorphological studies of Morocco and the North-West Sahara
Contient les études suivantes: B. J. SMITH: A review of climatic geomorphology and Quaternary climatic change in the Northwest Sahara| An introduction to the landscape evolution of the Tafilalt region Southeast Morocco| P. A. WHITTEL
, Geomorphological history of an area of Southeast Morocco| Downstream pebble shape variations in a Wadi Tributary to the River Ziz, Southeast Morocco.