The key agent involved in the formation of landforms like inselbergs, ...
Wind is the key agent involved in the formation of landforms like inselbergs, yardangs, and zeugen. Wind erosion and deposition processes play a significant role in shaping these unique geological formations. Let's explore in detail how wind influences the formation of these landforms.
1. Inselbergs:
- Inselbergs are isolated hills or mountains that rise abruptly from a flat surrounding landscape.
- Wind erosion is the primary factor in the formation of inselbergs. Over time, the wind erodes the softer surrounding rock layers, leaving behind the more resistant rock formations as prominent hills or mountains.
- The wind carries small particles of sand and dust, which act as abrasives, gradually wearing down the softer rocks and sculpting the inselbergs.
2. Yardangs:
- Yardangs are elongated, streamlined landforms that are typically found in arid or desert regions.
- Wind erosion is the main process responsible for the formation of yardangs. As the wind blows across the landscape, it picks up loose sediment and particles.
- These suspended particles act as sandblasting agents, continuously bombarding the exposed rock surfaces.
- Over time, the wind erodes the softer rocks more rapidly, creating elongated depressions or troughs known as yardangs.
3. Zeugen:
- Zeugen are elongated, ridge-like landforms that often form parallel to the prevailing wind direction.
- Wind erosion and deposition work together to shape zeugen. As the wind blows across a landscape, it transports and deposits sediment.
- The deposited sediment accumulates on the windward side of obstacles like hills or ridges, creating a protective barrier.
- The windward side experiences less erosion, while the leeward side is more exposed to erosion. This differential erosion creates elongated ridges known as zeugen.
In conclusion, wind is the primary agent involved in the formation of landforms like inselbergs, yardangs, and zeugen. Through the processes of erosion and deposition, wind shapes these unique geological features in arid and desert regions.
The key agent involved in the formation of landforms like inselbergs, ...
- An inselberg is an isolated hill, ridge, or small mountain that abruptly protrudes out from a virtually level surrounding plain. The word inselberg translates to “Island Mountain” in German.
- Inselbergs arise from rocks that erode at a slower rate compared to surrounding rocks. The landform consists of an erosion-resistant rock that protects a softer rock such as limestone. The resistant rock remains isolated as ongoing erosion erodes the less resistant rock around it.
- Some of the world’s most impressive inselbergs are in Africa and the Middle East.
- Yardangs are steep-sided deeply undercut over-hanging rock ridges separated from one another by long grooves or corridors or passageways cut in desert floors of relatively softer rocks.
- These are formed where alternate bands of hard and soft rocks are vertical or inclined to the horizontal plane. The intervening beds of softer rocks are abraded and eroded materials are blown away by the wind.
- The most characteristic feature of yardangs is their parallelism.
- Yardangs occur in various deserts of the world including the Turkistan and the Mojave deserts.
- Zeugen is a tablet-shaped area of rock found in arid and semi-arid areas formed when more resistant rock is reduced at a slower rate than softer rocks around it under the effects of erosion.
- These are formed in those desert areas where the diurnal range of temperature is very high. Repeated freezing and thawing of rocks causes disintegration of rocks and the disintegrated material is blown away by the wind.
- Thus key agent involved in the formation of the above land forms is wind as explained above.
Hence, option (b) is the correct answer.