Wind as a Geomorphic Agent in Cold Climates

A 2004 monograph describing wind-generated polar landforms, both modern-day and those preserved in the geological record.

Matti Seppälä (Author)

9781107405523, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 19 July 2012

378 pages
24.4 x 17 x 2 cm, 0.6 kg

'… an original and substantive book … it provides a masterly overview that exposes the reader to some important, fascinating, but under-researched phenomena.' Progress in Physical Geography

This book was first published in 2004. Wind erosion and deposition are important factors in cold climates because of the open space and scarce vegetation. Aeolian processes connected with sand drift in polar environments are similar to those in deserts but in cold environments, frost and snow also play an important role. The Arctic is characterised by strangely eroded rocks, wind-formed lakes, sand dunes and loess deposits that owe their formation to aeolian processes controlled by frost and snow cover. Wind as a Geomorphic Agent in Cold Climates presents a detailed description and explanation of these wind-generated polar landforms. It includes numerous illustrations that will assist the reader in identifying and interpreting these features; both modern-day and those preserved in the geological record. This book provides an important introduction to this area of geocryology and will form a useful reference for graduate students and researchers in a variety of fields, including geomorphology, geology and environmental science.

Acknowledgements
1. Introduction
2. Delimitation and characterization of cold environments
3. General wind patterns in polar regions
4. Wind drift of mineral material
5. Abrasion
6. Deflation
7. Question of oriented lakes
8. Accumulation
9. Wind directions interpreted from field evidence
10. Ice wedge casts and sand wedges
11. Snow
12. Drift of snow
13. Snow accumulation
14. Deflation of snow cover
15. Snow and frost formation
16. Aeolian landforms indicating palaeowind conditions
References
Index.

Subject Areas: Physical geography & topography [RGB], Geological surface processes [geomorphology RBGD]