Geomorphology

The geomorphology is a discipline of the Géosciences. Initially, it comes from the physical Géographie. But its increasingly quantitative approach tends to classify it today in physical sciences of Terre.
It describes the forms of the surface of the Earth (Relief) and explains their formation and their evolution, under the effect of the Tectonique and the erosion. As any science it has its object, the Relief, and its methods of study (comparison relief-géologie  , measurements of the relief, etc…).
One distinguishes the structural reliefs, which are explained by the Stratigraphie and the Orogenèse, and the reliefs from erosion.

Moreover one distinguishes two subbranches from the géomorphologie :

  • the structural Géomorphologie is interested in the forms due to the internal geodynamism of the sphere, i.e. with the tectonique  ;
  • the climatic Géomorphologie (also called zonal geomorphology or dynamics) specializes in the external processes which contribute to the formation and the evolution of the relief, the erosion, the Altération, transport, the deposit, etc…
One could say, schematically, that the structural geomorphology creates the broad outlines of the relief, while the climatic geomorphology (or dynamics) explains the evolution of it.
The geomorphology is an important field for the ecology of the landscape. forms and structures of the landscapes being determining for the flora, fauna and their functions with the center of the ecosystems, in particular concerning the biological Corridors and certain points such as the island S, Isthmus S, Lake S, River S, collars, Strait S, hollow, etc which naturally control the circulation of flows of Gène S, species and populations.

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