Types of Landforms and factors affecting Landform development

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 A) What are Landforms?



  • Geomorphology is the significant branch of physical geography. It is defined as a science of description of various forms on Earth's Surface. 
  • On the other hand, geomorphology is termed as the scientific study of surface features on Earth involving interpretative description of landforms, their origin, nature and mechanism of geomorphological processes which evolves the land.
  • With diverse physical characteristics, landforms are spread throughout the planet. Together, they constitute a specific terrain and their physical arrangement in the landscape forming topography.
  • The features of landforms include Slope, elevation, rock exposure, stratification and rock type.
  • These are further categorized into many different landforms based on their physical features and shapes.
  • Examples of distinctive landforms include, mountains, valleys, plateaus, glaciers, hills, loess, desserts, shoreline and plains.
  • Features such as volcanoes, lakes, rivers, mid oceanic ridges and great ocean basins are also part of landform features.

B) Factors influencing Landform Development:

1) CLIMATE: 
  • The rate of weathering in a given location is greatly influenced by climate.
  • It controls vegetation cover, which influences the effectiveness of erosional processes. 
  • Generally, the higher the average temperature and humidity, the more rapid is chemical weathering.
  • In cold climates frost actions is the most common form of weathering. Frost actions is intense in climates having temperature variations that lead to repeated cycles of freezing and thawing.

2) TECTONIC ACTIVITIES:
  • Plate Tectonics is the study of Earth's crust and its deformation by plate movements and earthquakes.
  • These processes play a crucial role in landform development as they are responsible for the formation of mountains, plateaus and rift valleys.
  • For example, the formation of Andes Mountains in the South America was caused by collision of the South American plate and the Nazca plate, which resulted in upliftment of the Earth's crust and creation of Andes Mountains.



3) SOIL EROSION:
  • Soil Erosion simply means the removal of soil particles from Earth's surface by the actions of wind, water and ice. 
  • Soil deterioration and low water quality due to erosion and surface runoff have become severe problems worldwide.
  • Soil Erosion plays an important role in the landform development, as it affects the rate of erosion and deposition.
  • For example, soil erosion can result in the formation of deep valleys and canyons as well as removal of soil from steep slopes.  

4) LANDUSE PATTERNS:
  • Land use patterns greatly affects the formation of landforms.
  • The land use changes such as conversion of forest land to agricultural land or construction of Urban areas are considered to be the main factors for landform development.
  • For example, changes in the land use patterns can result in the creation of new landforms, such as dammed lakes and reservoirs, as well as modification of existing landforms, such as widening of valleys and creation of terraces.