Landforms
Landscape evolution A Natural landscape is the original landscape that exists before it is acted upon by human culture. An Anthropic landscape is the landscape modified by humans for their activities and life
Landscape Natural landscape Anthropic landscape
Endogenous processes Many different geological processes shaped The Earth. The endogenous forces that cause these processes come from both above and beneath the Earth surface.
Endogenous forces There are three main endogenous processes: folding (piegamento), faulting (frattura)and volcanism. They take place mainly along the plate boundaries, which are the zones that lay on the edges of the plates. Endogenous processes cause many major landform features.
Mountain-Building The term orogenesis ( mountain-building ) refers to the formation of mountains and relief by the convergence of tectonic plates.
Millions of years ago mountains were not mountains at all. They were part of a flat plain under the oceans. This is the reason why we can find fossil seashells on the mountains
Exogenous processes destroy and model landscape By contrast, exogenous processes come from forces on or above the Earth surface. Weathering and Erosion are exogenous process. Erosion happens as a result of : Ice, rainfall, snowfall, tsunamis, winds, wave currents and so on Water, sediment transport and deposition in fluvial systems such as rivers. Movement of material on hill slopes (versanti); More events such as rock falls People, animals or plants digging ( to dig= scavare) in the Earth.
Old mountains disappear new mountains form
Mountains Mountains have high relief (over 600 metres). Mountains exert great influences on populations, river courses, regional climate, agriculture, tourism industry.
Mountain shape
U-SHAPED VALLEYS U-shaped valleys or glacial troughs, are formed by the process of glaciation. They have a characteristic U shape, with steep, straight sides and a flat bottom. They are formed when a glacier travels across and down a slope, carving the valley by the action of scouring. Examples of U-valleys are found in mountainous regions, like the Alps, Scottish Highlands, Scandinavia.
V-SHAPED VALLEYS A valley having a cross-sectional profile in the form of the letter V, commonly produced by stream erosion. Also known as V-shaped valley. Vertical erosion in the river channel results in the formation of a steep sided valley. Over time the side of this valley are weakened by weathering processes and continued vertical erosion at the base of the valley.
EUROPEAN RELIEFS In northern Europe, mountain chains are lower and rounded. Most of the continent is occupied by old mountains. In the east there are large flat plains. Scandinavian Alps The Pennines
In southern Europe there are young mountains and the mountain chains are high. The Pyrenees, the Alps, the Carpathian, Caucaus the Appennines, Sierra Nevada
HILLS A hill is a natural area elevation of the earth surface, smaller than a mountain ( 300-600 metres) Hills may form through geomorphic phenomena: faulting, erosion of larger landforms, such as mountains and movement and deposition of sediment by glaciers (e.g. moraines and drumlins or by erosion exposing solid rock which then weathers down into a hill.)
PLAINS A plain is a broad area of relatively flat land. (0-300 meters). Plains are one of the major landforms on Earth They cover more than one-third of the world land area. Plains exist on every continent. Plains form in many different ways. Some plains form as ice and water erode. Water and ice carry the bits of dirt, rock, and other material, called sediment. Volcanic activity can also form plains. The movement of rivers sometimes forms plains. Many rivers run through valleys. As rivers move they gradually erode the valley, creating broad plains. As a river floods, it overflows its bank. The flood carries mud, sand, and other sediment out over the land. Flood plains are often rich in nutrients and create fertile farmland. The flood plain surrounding Africa s Nile River has helped Egyptian civilization thrive for thousands of years. Alluvial plains form at the base of mountains. Water carrying sediment flows downhill until it hits flat land.. The Po River in Italy has created an alluvial plain, the Padana Plain. Many rivers deposit their sediment in the sea. As the sediment builds up, it might rise above sea level, forming a coastal plain. The Adriatic Coastal Plain stretches along much of the eastern coast of Italy.