NASA Logo

NTRS

NTRS - NASA Technical Reports Server

Back to Results
Desert pavement study at Amboy, CaliforniaDesert pavement is a general term describing a surface that typically consists of a thin layer of cm-sized rock fragments set on top of a layer of finer material in which no fragments are found. An understanding of desert pavement is important to planetary geology because they may play a major role in the formation and visibility of various aeolian features such as wind streaks, which are important on Mars and may be important on Venus. A field study was conducted in Amboy, California to determine the formation mechanism of desert pavements. The probable sequence of events for the formation and evolution of a typical desert pavement surface, based on this experiment and the work of others, is as follows. Starting with a layer of surface material consisting of both fine particles and rock fragments, aeolian deflation will rapidly erode the surface until an armored lag is developed, after which aeolian processes become less important. The concentration of fragments then slowly increases as new fragments are brought to the surface from the subsurface and as fragments move downslope by sheet wash. Sheet wash would be responsible for removing very fine particles from the surface and for moving the fragments relative to one another, forming interlocks.
Document ID
19840015424
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Other - Other
Authors
Williams, S.
(Arizona State Univ. Tempe, AZ, United States)
Greeley, R.
(Arizona State Univ. Tempe, AZ, United States)
Date Acquired
August 12, 2013
Publication Date
April 1, 1984
Publication Information
Publication: NASA. Washington Rept. of Planetary Geol. Programs
Subject Category
Geophysics
Accession Number
84N23492
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
Document Inquiry

Available Downloads

There are no available downloads for this record.
No Preview Available