Preprints
Filtering by Subject: Planetary Geomorphology
A New Interpretation of Ptolemy's Germania Magna: Employing Computer-Assisted Image Distortion of a Medieval Map by Donnus Nicolaus Germanus to Examine Post-Glacial Geodynamics in Europe
Published: 2025-02-02
Subjects: Geology, Geomorphology, Geophysics and Seismology, Nature and Society Relations, Other Astrophysics and Astronomy, Other Earth Sciences, Other Geography, Other Planetary Sciences, Planetary Geology, Planetary Geomorphology, Planetary Geophysics and Seismology, Stratigraphy, Tectonics and Structure, The Sun and the Solar System
This paper revisits Claudius Ptolemy's depiction of Germania Magna through a multidisciplinary approach, integrating computer-aided distortion analysis of Donnus Nicolaus Germanus's medieval cartography with geological insights. The study proposes that the region underwent significant and complex transformations, likely influenced by tectonic activity, such as the reactivation of the Caledonian [...]
Geomorphology and Morphogenesis of the Non-siliceous, Non-aqueous Fluvial Systems of Titan: A Review
Published: 2023-12-05
Subjects: Planetary Geomorphology
Titan is the only moon known in the solar system to possess not only an atmosphere, but an active weather cycle, tectonics, and erosive geomorphology. This weather cycle involves primarily liquid alkanes of methane and ethane (along with photochemical alterations of said compounds). Such liquid alkanes are the constituents through which stable bodies of liquid have been observed on Titan. These [...]
Fluvial reworking eliminates small craters, but does not meaningfully bias the Mars interbedded-crater record
Published: 2023-10-31
Subjects: Geomorphology, Planetary Geomorphology, Planetary Sedimentology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Interpreting the structures, morphology, and chemistry of the exposed stratigraphic record on Mars is complicated by ancient surface processes that have variably removed parts of the record. Previous research has used the lack of smaller craters (<50 m diameter) interbedded with fluvial deposits to constrain atmospheric pressure when rivers were active on Mars; the notion being that higher [...]
A Deep Learning framework to map riverbed sand mining budgets in large tropical deltas
Published: 2023-10-20
Subjects: Computer Sciences, Earth Sciences, Environmental Education, Environmental Health and Protection, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Sciences, Natural Resource Economics, Natural Resources and Conservation, Natural Resources Management and Policy, Other Environmental Sciences, Planetary Geomorphology, Planetary Sedimentology, Sustainability, Water Resource Management
Rapid urbanization has dramatically increased the demand for river sand, leading to soaring sand extraction rates that often exceed natural replenishment in many rivers globally. However, our understanding of the geomorphic and social-ecological impacts arising from Sand Mining (SM) remains limited, primarily due to insufficient data on sand extraction rates. Conventionally, bathymetry surveys [...]
Complementary classifications of aeolian dunes based on morphology, dynamics, and fluid mechanics
Published: 2023-10-03
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Fluid Dynamics, Geomorphology, Other Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Physics, Planetary Geomorphology, Planetary Sciences, Sedimentology
Dunes form where winds blow over a bed of mobile sediment grains – conditions that are common in our solar system. On Earth, dunes abound in arid continental interiors and along sandy coastlines. Dune fields have also been recognized on Venus, Mars, Saturn's moon Titan, and Pluto. In response to the different boundary conditions and other environmental forcings, dunes adopt a rich diversity [...]
Grain shape effects in bed load sediment transport
Published: 2021-10-08
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geomorphology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Planetary Geomorphology
Bed load sediment transport, in which wind or water flowing over a bed of sediment causes grains to roll or hop along the bed, is a critically important mechanism in contexts ranging from river restoration to planetary exploration. Despite its widespread occurrence, predictions of bed load sediment flux are notoriously imprecise. Many studies have focused on grain size variability as a source of [...]
Safety and Belonging in the Field: A Checklist for Educators
Published: 2021-08-19
Subjects: Atmospheric Sciences, Biogeochemistry, Climate, Cosmochemistry, Earth Sciences, Education, Environmental Education, Environmental Health and Protection, Environmental Indicators and Impact Assessment, Environmental Monitoring, Environmental Sciences, Environmental Studies, Fresh Water Studies, Geochemistry, Geographic Information Sciences, Geography, Geology, Geomorphology, Geophysics and Seismology, Glaciology, Higher Education, Human Geography, Hydrology, Life Sciences, Meteorology, Mineral Physics, Natural Resource Economics, Natural Resources and Conservation, Natural Resources Management and Policy, Nature and Society Relations, Oceanography, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Oil, Gas, and Energy, Other Earth Sciences, Other Environmental Sciences, Other Geography, Other Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Other Planetary Sciences, Outdoor Education, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Physical and Environmental Geography, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Planetary Biogeochemistry, Planetary Geochemistry, Planetary Geology, Planetary Geomorphology, Planetary Geophysics and Seismology, Planetary Glaciology, Planetary Hydrology, Planetary Mineral Physics, Planetary Sciences, Planetary Sedimentology, Remote Sensing, Sedimentology, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Soil Science, Spatial Science, Speleology, Stratigraphy, Sustainability, Tectonics and Structure, Volcanology, Water Resource Management
Ensuring taught fieldwork is a positive, generative, collective, and valuable experience for all participants requires considerations beyond course content. To guarantee safety and belonging, participants’ identities (backgrounds and protected characteristics) must be considered as a part of fieldwork planning and implementation. Furthermore, getting fieldwork right is an important step in [...]
Conditions for aeolian transport in the Solar System
Published: 2020-12-06
Subjects: Planetary Geomorphology
Sand dunes arise wherever loose sediment is mobilized by winds that exceed threshold speeds, and grains are sufficiently strong to survive collisions. The ubiquity of dunes in our solar system is remarkable and confounding; their occurrence under conditions of thin atmospheres, and/or friable materials, challenges our understanding of sediment transport mechanics. Current threshold theories lose [...]
A New Mechanism for Terrace Formation in Submarine Canyons
Published: 2018-09-24
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Education, Engineering, Geology, Geomorphology, Life Sciences, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Planetary Geomorphology, Planetary Sciences, Planetary Sedimentology, Sedimentology, Stratigraphy
Deep canyons on Earth occur in both terrestrial and submarine environments, where they are carved by actively incising channels. Apparently similar flights of unpaired terraces, seen at the inside of bends in incised sinuous channels, are also common in both environments. Here we demonstrate a new mechanism for terrace formation that we believe is unique to settings where sediment transporting [...]
Ocean Drilling Perspectives on Meteorite Impacts
Published: 2018-08-08
Subjects: Earth Sciences, Geophysics and Seismology, Oceanography and Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology, Paleobiology, Paleontology, Physical Sciences and Mathematics, Planetary Geomorphology, Planetary Geophysics and Seismology, Planetary Sciences, Stratigraphy
Extraterrestrial impacts are a ubiquitous process in the solar system, reshaping the surface of rocky bodies of all sizes. On early Earth, impact structures may have been a nursery for the evolution of life. More recently, a large meteorite impact caused the end-Cretaceous mass extinction, causing the extinction of 75% of species known from the fossil, including non-avian dinosaurs, and clearing [...]