Geomorphology and Earth Surface Processes
Summary
Geomorphology examines the origin, evolution and dynamics of Earth’s surface forms under the influence of both internal and external forces. Endogenic processes such as tectonic uplift, volcanic activity and crustal loading produce mountains, rift valleys and coastal terraces. Exogenic processes—including glacial erosion, river incision, wind transport, chemical weathering and mass wasting—modify these primary landforms, redistributing rock and sediment across landscapes. Interactions between agents often yield feedbacks: glaciers sculpt U-shaped valleys that focus meltwater channels; rivers carve floodplains that host avulsion and overbank deposition; wind reworks exposed sediments into dunes and loess sheets; temperature fluctuations induce thermal stress weathering in rock masses. Coastal zones respond to relative sea-level changes, storm surges and sediment supply, producing barrier islands, deltas and submerged palaeoshorelines. Contemporary research integrates field observations, remote sensing, geochronology and numerical modelling to quantify rates of erosion, deposition and landform migration. This multidisciplinary approach informs assessments of natural hazards, resource distribution and landscape resilience in the face of ongoing environmental change.
Research from Nature Portfolio
Reconstructions of the last Eurasian Ice Sheet combine ice-sheet modelling with palaeoceanographic proxies to show that southern sectors were driven by temperature-forced surface mass balance, while northern sectors responded primarily to Nordic Seas ocean circulation. This work highlights the non-linear sensitivity of marine-based ice sheets to coupled ocean–atmosphere dynamics. In high-temperature tunnel environments, numerical shape-function models demonstrate that the geometry and spacing of fractures amplify local thermal stresses in granite, redistributing heat and elevating stress at fracture tips. These insights underpin stability assessments for exposed rock in hot climates. Along a beach-ridge plain in eastern Hokkaido, ground-penetrating radar and core analyses reveal elongate scour ponds formed by high-energy tsunamis at intervals of several centuries. The persistence and rejuvenation of these ponds by repeated waves underscore the capacity of tsunami-driven erosion to reshape coastal geomorphology over millennial timescales.
Geomorphology and Earth Surface Processes publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in geomorphology and earth surface processes across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Grounding line: The boundary at which a glacier or ice sheet loses contact with its bed and begins to float.
Ice stream: A fast-flowing corridor within an ice sheet that transports the majority of ice to marine margins.
Thermal stress: Mechanical stress induced in rock or other materials by temperature-driven expansion and contraction.
Pediment: A gently sloping, bedrock-oriented surface formed by fluvial or sheet-wash erosion at the base of mountains.
Aeolian sediment: Particles—from fine dust to sand—transported and deposited by wind, shaping dunes and loess deposits.
References
- The role of ocean and atmospheric dynamics in the marine-based collapse of the last Eurasian Ice Sheet. Communications Earth & Environment (2022).
- The shape function method of nonlinear thermal stress of granite fracture tips in a high-temperature environment. Scientific Reports (2024).
- Scour ponds from unusually large tsunamis on a beach-ridge plain in eastern Hokkaido, Japan. Scientific Reports (2023).
- Growth and retreat of the last British–Irish Ice Sheet, 31 000 to 15 000 years ago: the BRITICE‐CHRONO reconstruction. Boreas (2022).
- Geomorphic Process Chains in High‐Mountain Regions—A Review and Classification Approach for Natural Hazards Assessment. Reviews of Geophysics (2023).
- Provenance of Aeolian Sediments in the Ordos Deserts and Its Implication for Weathering, Sedimentary Processes. Frontiers in Earth Science (2021).
About these summaries
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