Landforms and Geology of Granite Terrains

Granite forms are exposed over more than fifteen per cent of land surfaces, a significance comparable to that of the carbonates. This book examines these forms and comprehensively explains the landforms and landscapes developed on granitic rock, uniquely focusing on granitic terrains rather than karst landscapes. A detailed examination of the major and minor forms, the book covers both well-known and less familiar large granitic terrains, providing interpretative tools for analyzing and understanding the landscape with a number of useful theories on granite forms. The importance of structure is emphasized, including crystal stresses and the value of etching of subsurface initiation, multi- or two-stage development, neotectonic and solution forms, and some so-called inherited forms and surfaces. Morphogenetic forms are also put into context and compared with similar types of rock.