In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; : plateaus or plateaux),
Formation
Plateaus can be formed by a number of processes, including upwelling of volcanic magma, extrusion of lava,
plate tectonics movements, and erosion by water and glaciers.
Volcanic
are produced by
volcanism. They may be formed by upwelling of volcanic magma or extrusion of lava. The underlining mechanism in forming plateaus from upwelling starts when magma rises from the mantle, causing the ground to swell upward. In this way, large, flat areas of rock are uplifted to form a plateau. For plateaus formed by extrusion, the rock is built up from lava spreading outward from cracks and weak areas in the crust. The Antrim Plateau in
Northern Ireland, the
Deccan Plateau in
India, the Big Raven Plateau in Canada, and the
Columbia Plateau in the
United States are examples of lava plateaus.
Tectonic
Tectonic plateaus are formed by tectonic plate movements which cause uplift, and are normally of a considerable size, and a fairly uniform altitude. Examples are the
Deccan Plateau in
India and the
Meseta Central on the Iberian Peninsula.
Erosion
Plateaus can also be formed by the erosional processes of
on mountain ranges, leaving them sitting between the mountain ranges. Water can also erode mountains and other landforms down into plateaus. Dissected plateaus are highly eroded plateaus cut by rivers and broken by deep narrow valleys. An example is the Scottish Highlands.
Classification
Plateaus are classified according to their surrounding environment.
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Intermontane plateaus are some of the highest and most extensive plateaus in the world, enclosed by fold mountains. Examples are the Tibetan Plateau between the Himalayas and Kunlun Mountains, and the Altiplano plateau between two ranges of the Andes.
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Piedmont plateaus are bordered on one side by mountains and on the other by a plain or a sea. The Piedmont Plateau of the Eastern United States between the Appalachian Mountains and the Atlantic Plain is an example.
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Continental plateaus are bordered on all sides by plains or oceans, forming away from the mountains. An example of a continental plateau is the Antarctic Plateau in East Antarctica.
Large plateaus by continent
Africa
The highest African plateau is the Ethiopian Highlands which cover the central part of Ethiopia. It forms the largest continuous area of its altitude in the continent, with little of its surface falling below 1,500 metres (4,921 ft), while the summits reach heights of up to 4,556 metres (14,928 ft). It is sometimes called the Roof of Africa due to its height and large area
Another example is the Highveld which is the portion of the South African inland plateau which has an altitude above approximately 1,500 metres, but below 2,100 metres, thus excluding the Lesotho mountain regions. It is home to some of the largest South African urban area.
In Egypt are the Giza Plateau
Antarctica
Another very large plateau is the icy Antarctic Plateau, which is sometimes referred to as the Polar Plateau or King Haakon VII Plateau, home to the geographic
South Pole and the Amundsen–Scott South Pole Station, which covers most of
East Antarctica where there are no known mountains but rather high of superficial ice and which spreads very slowly toward the surrounding coastline through enormous
. The polar ice cap is so massive that the
Sonar measurements of ice thickness have shown that large areas are below
sea level. But, as the ice melts, the land beneath will rebound through
isostasy and ultimately rise above sea level.
Asia
The largest and highest plateau in the world is the
Tibetan Plateau, sometimes metaphorically described as the "Roof of the World", which is still being formed by the collisions of the Indo-Australian and
Eurasian Plate plate tectonics. The Tibetan Plateau covers approximately , at about above sea level. The plateau is sufficiently high to reverse the
Hadley cell convection cycles and to drive the monsoons of India towards the south. The Deosai Plains in Pakistan are situated at an average elevation of 4,114 meters (13,497 ft) above sea level. They are considered to be the second highest plateaus in the world.
Other major plateaus in Asia are: Najd on the Arabian Peninsula, elevation 762 to 1,525 m (2,500 to 5,003 ft), Armenian Highlands (≈, elevation ), Iranian Plateau (≈, elevation ), Anatolian Plateau, Mongolian Plateau (≈, elevation ), and the Deccan Plateau (≈, elevation ).
North America
A large plateau in North America is the
Colorado Plateau, which covers about in
Colorado,
Arizona,
New Mexico, and
Utah.
In northern Arizona and southern Utah the Colorado Plateau is by the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River. This came to be over 10 million years ago, the river was already there, though not necessarily on exactly the same course. Then, subterranean geological forces caused the land in that part of North America to gradually rise by about a centimeter per year for millions of years. An unusual balance occurred: the river that would become the Colorado River was able to erode into the crust of the Earth at a nearly equal rate to the uplift of the plateau. Now, millions of years later, the North Rim of the Grand Canyon is at an elevation of about above sea level, and the South Rim of the Grand Canyon is about above sea level. At its deepest, the Colorado River is about below the level of the North Rim.
Another high-altitude plateau in North America is the Mexican Plateau. With an area of and average height of 1,825 metres, it is the home of more than 70 million people.
Oceania
The
Western Plateau, part of the Australian Shield, is an ancient
craton covering much of the continent's southwest, an area of some 700,000 square kilometres. It has an average elevation between 305 and 460 metres.
The North Island Volcanic Plateau is an area of high land occupying much of the centre of the North Island of New Zealand, with volcanoes, lava plateaus, and crater lakes, the most notable of which is the country's largest lake, Lake Taupō. The plateau stretches approximately 100 km east to west and 130 km north to south. The majority of the plateau is more than 600 metres above sea level.
The Northern Tablelands are the largest highland area in Australia, covering approximately 18,197 square kilometres. There are widespread high points over 1,000 metres including The Brothers (1,508m), Ben Lomond (1,505m), Mount Rumbee (1,503m), Point Lookout (1,564m), Campoompeta (1,510m), Mount Spirabo (1,492m), Mount Mitchell (1,475m), Chandler's Peak (1,471m), Mount Grundy (1,462m), Mount Bajimba (1,448 m) and the highest point at Round Mountain is 1,584 metres above sea level. The now closed railway station at Ben Lomond, was the highest railway station in Australia. Apart from Antarctica it is the most extensive highland region in the Southern Hemisphere with an average elevation of over 1,000 metres.
South America
The parallel Sierra of Andes delimit one of the world highest plateaux: the
Altiplano, (Spanish for "high plain"), Andean Plateau or Bolivian Plateau. It lies in west-central South America, where the Andes are at their widest, is the most extensive area of high plateau on Earth outside of Tibet. The bulk of the Altiplano lies within Bolivian and Peruvian territory while its southern parts lie in Chile. The Altiplano plateau hosts several cities like Puno, Oruro, El Alto and La Paz the administrative seat of Bolivia. Northeastern Altiplano is more humid than the Southwestern, the latter of which hosts several
salares, or salt flats, due to its aridity. At the Bolivia-Peru border lies
Lake Titicaca, the largest lake in South America.
The Colombian capital city of Bogota sits on another Andean plateau known as the Altiplano Cundiboyacense roughly the size of Switzerland. Averaging a height of above sea level, this northern Andean plateau is situated in the country's eastern range and is divided into three main flat regions: the Bogotá savanna, the valleys of Ubaté and Chiquinquirá, and the valleys of Duitama and Sogamoso.
See also
Bibliography
External links
