Geomorphic systems are typically nonlinear, owing largely to their threshold-dominated nature (but due to other factors as well). Nonlinear geomorphic systems may exhibit complex behaviors not possible in linear systems, including dynamical instability and deterministic chaos. The latter are common in geomorphology, indicating that small, short-lived changes may produce disproportionately large...

the main issues about relation between climate and relief in the romanian geomorphological literature follow three directions of research: the description of pleistocene glacial and pleistocene-holocene periglacial landforms in the carpathians; the direct analysis of climate?s role in landform development; the integration of separate works and findings in a synthetic morphodynamic system applic...

The Dry Valleys are subdivided into three microclimate zones on the basis of summertime measurements of atmospheric temperature, soil moisture, relative humidity and wind-speed/ direction. Subtle variations in these climate parameters result in considerable differences in process geomorphology and in the development of unique landforms within each zone. The mapped zones include a coastal thaw z...

We examined the distribution of ground-flora species (herbaceous and woody species <1 m tall) across riparian areas of northeastern Wisconsin in an effort to understand how hierarchical landscape properties, such as the physiographic system (ground moraine and outwash plain), valley system (constrained and unconstrained), and valley floor landforms influence distribution patterns of ground-flor...

Geomorphic mapping of Egypt’s Western Desert from LANDSAT-MSS images reveals oriented aeolian landforms that record, in part, Holocene winds. Wind directions reconstructed from these landforms indicate the dominance of N–S airflow from 30jN to 20jN, turning clockwise southward to NE–SW, conformable with modern circulation. A second direction appears over western Egypt, W between 30jN and 26jN, ...

The Conservation Estate, administered by the Department of Conservation (DOC), contains areas of land of undetermined conservation value. These include coastal lands, obtained and managed by the Government of the day for other than conservation purposes. One such purpose was to stabilise coastal sand dunes where drifting sands presented a hazard to adjacent railway lines or roads. The Sand Drif...

Relatively young landforms on Mars, seen in high-resolution images acquired by the Mars Global Surveyor Mars Orbiter Camera since March 1999, suggest the presence of sources of liquid water at shallow depths beneath the martian surface. Found at middle and high martian latitudes (particularly in the southern hemisphere), gullies within the walls of a very small number of impact craters, south p...

Landscapes subject to constant forcing tend to evolve toward equilibrium states in which individual landforms have similar characteristics. Yet, even in landscapes at or near equilibrium, there can be significant variability among individual landforms. Furthermore, sites subject to similar processes and conditions can have different mean landform characteristics. This variability is often ascri...

Nonlinearity is common in geomorphology, though not present or relevant in every geomorphic problem. It is often ignored, sometimes to the detriment of understanding surface processes and landforms. Nonlinearity opens up possibilities for complex behavior that are not possible in linear systems, though not all nonlinear systems are complex. Complex nonlinear dynamics have been documented in a n...