Sand Seas

Hesse, Paul

doi:10.1002/9781118945650.ch8

Cited by 4 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 88 publications

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“…The inferred wind direction and/or variability is based on previous research and helps connect the identification in this tree to the growth mechanisms and fluid dynamics outlined in the other two classification trees in this work. Dunes may occur in desert sand seas and ergs [48,49], on beaches of all kinds (e.g. on ocean shores, lake shores, playas, rivers and estuaries), and on coastal transgressive dunefields (coastal sand seas or ergs).…”

Section: Tree Description -Selection Of Dune Type From Shape and Inte...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Complementary classifications of aeolian dunes based on morphology, dynamics, and fluid mechanics

Courrech du Pont,

Rubin,

Narteau

et al. 2024

Preprint

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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 other planetary bodies, including Venus, Mars, Saturn’s moon Titan, and Pluto. Despite the relatively basic conditions required for their formation, dunes adopt a rich diversity of shapes, sizes, and behaviors in response to their boundary conditions and other environmental forcings. Thus, people around the globe and over centuries have developed a rich vocabulary to describe dunes and their complexity. In addition, many studies have been devoted to link dune shape to environmental forcings, usually by means of correlations. As a result, existing dune nomenclature often includes redundant terms with differing definitions across scientific communities. Although a worthy first step, correlation-based classifications can be misleading if not based on an underlying mechanics and if dune morphogenetic classes are not uniquely defined. Here, we synthesize existing dune terminology and put the last two decades of research on dune morphodynamics in perspective in proposing three simplified dune classification schemes based on the state-of-the-art understanding of dune morphology, morphogenetic processes and coupling between sand bed, fluid flow and sediment transport. Together, these classifications provide a unified framework for geomorphologists, sedimentologists, geographers, physicists, and others to describe windblown sand dunes on Earth and beyond through their shape, dynamics, and size as a response to winds and boundary conditions.

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Section: Tree Description -Selection Of Dune Type From Shape and Inte...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Complementary classifications of aeolian dunes based on morphology, dynamics, and fluid mechanics

Courrech du Pont,

Rubin,

Narteau

et al. 2024

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Extensive fluvio‐lacustrine sedimentation also is recorded along palaeochannels in the Eucla and Lake Eyre Basins during the warm and wet episodes of the early Pliocene (Alley, 1998; Alley et al., 2009; Krapf et al., 2019). The sedimentation in the valleys was in many cases a source of sand for adjacent dunefields, blown out from the valley floors during dry periods (Hesse, 2019). As such, while the formation of extensive dunefields did not occur until much later in the Quaternary under a considerably more arid regime, there would likely have been corridors of sandy substrates along the palaeovalleys of central Australia periodically throughout the Neogene, as well as isolated dune and sandsheet patches stabilized by existing vegetation (Hesse pers.…”

Section: Palaeolandscapes and Fossil Riversmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The Yilgarn in the southwest arid zone also conspicuously lacks dunefields. Bedrock topography exerts a strong influence on the distribution of the dunefields (see figure 8.9 in Hesse, 2019). In the eastern arid zone, the Cenozoic Lake Eyre and Murray‐Darling basins (within the Interior Lowlands of Jennings & Mabbutt, 1977]) underlie the Simpson, Strzelecki and Mallee dunefields.…”

Section: Desert Dunes and The Modern Physiographymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Here, scattered dunes are widespread but small, and mostly occur along valley floors associated with lakes and playas (Hesse, 2010). Despite the predominantly granite substrate in this region, the absence of dunes is thought to be associated with the cementing effect of widespread laterite in the soil profile that restricts the release of sand particles, along with steeper valleys that may prevent the accumulation of sand (Hesse, 2010, 2019). Other large dune‐free regions within low‐relief areas of the arid zone relate to bedrock lithologies not conducive to dune formation, i.e., the limestone Nullarbor Plain, the shales and mudstones of the Georgina Basin, or the clay plains of the Lake Eyre and Murray Darling Drainage Basins (Hesse, 2010).…”

Section: Desert Dunes and The Modern Physiographymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Arid zones are some of the most understudied biomes on Earth. While no two deserts are the same, they typically are found in basins and other topographically subdued lowlands (Hesse, 2019), and can appear less geologically diverse than other landscapes because the land surface and bedrock are often obscured by extensive dunefields and sandplains. However, many arid zones are home to extraordinarily rich assemblages of plants and animals that have diversified in these extreme and xeric environments.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Life in the “dead heart” of Australia: The geohistory of the Australian deserts and its impact on genetic diversity of arid zone lizards

Pepper

Keogh

2021

Journal of Biogeography

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Aim The Australian deserts are home to a remarkable diversity of taxa that might appear to have evolved in the absence of topographic and physical barriers to dispersal. In fact this is a biogeographical illusion, as the dunefields of the modern arid zone obscure the fossil landscapes of the wet desert that existed for much of the Cenozoic. As the geohistory of Australia's arid zone is not widely understood by biologists, we review its geological development and contemporary landscapes in an accessible way, and describe eight biogeographical hypotheses centred on how geomorphology, evolutionary history and contemporary ecological factors interact to shape diversification patterns in the desert lowlands. Location Australia. Taxon Lizards. Methods We review the arid zone landscapes before and after the development of the vast dunefields. As lizards represent a significant component of genetic studies that sample widely across the arid biome, we focus on this taxonomic group to establish emerging patterns. Results Recent geological work suggests that the dunefields never formed extensive mobile landscapes such as in the Sahara, but rather were a mosaic of vegetated and stable dune surfaces with scattered bare, mobile patches. Large fluvial systems in the eastern arid zone during the Pleistocene also are at odds with the general perception of an arid landscape during this time. Incorporating this geohistorical insight, understanding where landscape heterogeneity is greatest within the arid zone, and where relative homogeneity might facilitate connectivity and gene flow, are at the heart of our biogeographic hypotheses. Main conclusions Patterns are emerging that reflect the underlying influence of geomorphological processes on the genetic structure of Australian desert taxa. Quantifying finer‐scale edaphic complexity across the arid zone, widespread genetic sampling from disparate taxonomic groups, and a more detailed understanding of species ecology and life history will greatly improve our understanding of the ecological and historical drivers of diversity gradients in the Australian deserts.

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The Development and Characteristics of Sand Seas in the Central Sahara

Knight,

Merlo

2023

World Geomorphological Landscapes

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Sand Seas

Cited by 4 publications

References 88 publications

Complementary classifications of aeolian dunes based on morphology, dynamics, and fluid mechanics

Complementary classifications of aeolian dunes based on morphology, dynamics, and fluid mechanics

Life in the “dead heart” of Australia: The geohistory of the Australian deserts and its impact on genetic diversity of arid zone lizards

The Development and Characteristics of Sand Seas in the Central Sahara

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