Landform and Process Associated With Winds

Landforms and process
associated with winds

Prepared by: Engr. Mark
• The earth is surrounded by an envelope of gases
called the atmosphere.
• Atmosphere is composed chiefly of gases

collectively known as air.
• Air in motion is called wind.
• The movement of the atmosphere in a direction

parallel to the earth surface is wind .i.e. the air in
motion is called wind whereas the vertical
movements of the atmosphere are termed as air
currents.
• Wind is one of the major geological agents of

change on the surface.
The Entire geological work performed by wind can
be studied
1) Erosion
2) Transportation
3) Deposition
Wind Erosion:-
• Deflation
• Abrasion
• Attrition
Wind Erosion
a. Deflation [To blow away]
• Wind possesses not much erosive power over rocks [or] over the ground covered with
vegetation.
• Wind moving with sufficient velocity over dry and loose sands (or) bare ground covered dust, it
remove huge quantity of material from the surface known as deflation.
• In some desert deflation may remove the sand from a particular location to such an exert
depression touching the water is known as blow outs.
Deflation - oasis
• Water filled depression known as Oasis is a place where
vegetation is grows in desert.
• Stack is another term used for depression created by deflation.
• E.g. Auattarea in Western Egypt.
Deflation – Hammada
It is a bare rock surface from which thin cover of sand has been
blown away by strong winds. E.g. found in deserts
b. Wind abrasion
Wind is a powerful agent for wear of the rock surfaces when equipped with sand and dust
particles.
The load is acquired by the strong winds quite early blowing over sand heaps and loose dry soil.
This type of erosion involves polishing and altering of rock surface by a natural agent like wind, is
known as wind abrasion.
Yardangs
 It I an elongated low lying ridges forming overhangs above
depression.
 Yardangs are formed in area where rocks of alternate hard
and soft rock lying one over other with gentle slopes.
Pedestal rocks
 It is known as mushroom rocks. They flat topped rock masses with slender
supporting rock stems. The top is commonly referred as overhang and the
support on pedestal.
 The overhang and the stem are of the same rock that has been eroded by the
winds quite unevenly resulting in the mushroom like appearance of the rock
mass. They are generally few meters in height.
Ventifacts
 These are small sized rock fragments having one, two,
three or more polished faces.
 These wind polished fragments are called ventifacts.
c. Attrition of wind
 The sand grains and other particles that are lifted by the winds and
carried away and do not travel in a straight path.
 Their path is determine by their density and velocity of wind.
 It moves in zig – zag paths.
Nature of region.
• Areas covered by thick vegetation are least affected by winds.

• Marshy lands and saturated soil are not affected by wind erosion.
• Land surface such as dust, silt and sand are easily eroded by wind
Wind
Transportation
c. Attrition of wind
Wind performs work of Transportation in two ways:
 1) Suspension
 2) Saltation
1. Suspension
 The light density clay particles may be lifted by the wind from ground
and move along with winds is called suspension.
2. Saltation
 The heavier and coarse sediments are lifted up with high velocity and
short distance above ground up to 2 m. They picked up and drop
again during the transportation process of bouncing and jumping is
called saltation.
Deposition by Wind
1. Aeolian deposits
 Land forms and deposits made by wind-blown sediments are referred
as Aeolian deposits. Two types of Aeolian deposits
1. Sand Dunes
2. Loess
Types of Aeolian deposits
Sand Dunes
A sand dune is defined as a broadly conical heap of sand with two
slopes on either side of ridge or crest.
Crescentic dunes Type:- Barchans-Half moon shaped

Sigmoidal dunes
Transverse dunes
Types of Sand Dunes
i. Crescentic dunes
The wind ward slope is convex but Leeward concave in outline. This is
called cresentic dunes.
Type:- 1. Barchans
This is a type of cresentic dunes developed by wind in the same direction for
considerable length of time.
Types of Sand Dunes
ii. Sigmoidal Dune:-
• It is the shape of horns and a curved outline.
• Longitudinal dunes are called as saifs.
Types of Sand Dunes
iii. Transverse Dune:-
There are generally crescent dunes in nature and formed across the
wind.
Types of Aeolian deposits
Loess:
The finest particles of dust travelling in suspension with the wind are
transported to a considerable distance. When dropped down under favourable
conditions these have been found to accumulate in the different constituents the
form of paper-thin laminae, which have aggregated together to form a massive
deposit known as Loess.

Landform and Process Associated With Winds

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Landform and Process Associated With Winds

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Landforms and process

associated with winds

• Atmosphere is composed chiefly of gases

• Air in motion is called wind.

• The movement of the atmosphere in a direction

• Wind is one of the major geological agents of

• Areas covered by thick vegetation are least affected by winds.

Crescentic dunes Type:- Barchans-Half moon shaped

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