Download Landscapes

Landscapes
Earth Science
Mr. Cloud
Zion National Park, Utah
What is a landscape?
• A landscape, or topography, are features
of Earth’s surface at the interfaces
between the atmosphere, or hydrosphere,
and the top of the lithosphere.
Types of Landscapes
• Mountains
• Plateaus
• Plains
Mountains
• An area of high
elevation with regions
of steep gradient
• Peaks are usually
thousands of feet
higher than their base
• Internal Structure:
• Distorted rock
including faults, folds,
and volcanic rock
Plateaus
• Area of high
elevation with a
more level slope
or gradient than
mountains
• Internal
Structure:
• Undistorted,
horizontal rock
strata
Greenland Plateau
Plains
• Low elevation,
generally level
surface with little
change in gradient
• Regions dominated
by leveling forces
• Composed primarily
of sedimentary
rocks
Atlantic Coastal Plain
Landscape Regions
• Landscape
characteristics such
as elevation,
bedrock structure,
stream drainage, soil
characteristics, and
gradient occur in
combination to form
identifiable areas
called landscape
regions.
Factors of Landscape Development
•
Uplifting Forces: tectonic movement
that causes regions to change elevation
– Forces include volcanic action, earthquakes
Factors of Landscape Development
• Leveling forces: lower and level out land surfaces by
weathering and erosion
Ice Wedging
Weathering and Erosion at Niagara
Falls
• When both forces are present, the landscape will be uplifted or
lowered, depending on which force is dominant.
What other factors can affect landscape
development?
• Arid v. Humid
• Bedrock Structure
Sharp, unforgiving
characteristics
Arid Landscape
Rolling, smooth,
forgiving gradient
Humid Landscape
Bedrock Structure
• The composition and structural features of bedrock
are major factors in the rate of development and the
features of landscapes.
• Different rock types have varying degrees of
resistance to weathering and erosion
• If differing rocks are exposed to weathering and
erosion, the landscape will change at varying rates.
Stream Drainage Patterns
V-shaped valley: most
common
Volcanic
Faulting
Folded
mountains:
varying bedrock
resistance