Landforms

Based on personal experience, when introducing students to the geological and geographical aspects of environmental science initially, there is some confusion as to the exact difference between geology and geography. This is partially the case because, while there are several differences between the two sciences, they are also wed in many respects. To save on time and to avoid confusion, the best way to differentiate between the two sciences is to simply point out that for the purpose of this book geology is defined as the science that deals with the natural structure of Earth and geography deals with the human-drawn or human-made national borders and lines on Earth.

One thing is certain: certain aspects of geology, such as Earth’s internal forces involved in the building and development of mountains, continental plains, and coastal basins, are relevant to physical geography. Moreover, rock type and structure are important as variables that influence the effectiveness of rain, wind, and weathering processes on landforms.

We have all seen the photographs of the Earth taken from outer space; they show the surface of the Earth as being far from uniform. Earth’s surface is covered with natural features called landforms. These features are classified by type in order to describe them—mountains, valleys, plains, and so forth. The features’ names help us to locate specific places. Along with classification by type, landforms can also be classified and organized by the genetic processes that create them.

Genetic Landforming Processes

Genetic landforming processes work across the globe’s seven large landmasses, the continents. These processes include Aeolian landforms, coastal and oceanic landforms, erosion landforms, fluvial landforms, mountain and glacial landforms, slope landforms, and volcanic landforms. Genetic landforming processes and individual landforms are described in the following text; many of the individual landforms are described in greater detail later in the text. Keep in mind that many of the landforms listed and described below are produced by more than one landforming process. For example, landforms produced by erosion and weathering usually occur in both coastal and fluvial environments. However, to eliminate redundancy, each landform is only listed and described once under a specific process.