Use of Virtual Globes Resources in Periglacial and Climatic
Geomorphology: Blockfield Elevation Gradients in the Appalachian Mountains
Frederick E Nelson 1,
Kim J Park Nelson 2,
Michael T Walegur 1
1Department of Geography, University of Delaware,
Newark, DE 19716, United States
2Department of American Studies, University of Minnesota,
Minneapolis, MN 55455, United States
Locational data were obtained for 96 periglacial blockfields in the Appalachian Mountains of eastern USA using TerraServer, a Virtual Globes (VGs) resource for viewing air-photo and satellite imagery. The elevation of Appalachian blockfields south of the Last Glacial Maximum border parallels regional gradients of mean July, summer, and annual temperature inferred from paleoecological studies. The median elevations of blockfields throughout the Appalachians lay above timberline during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Most blockfields in the study area were formed in association with permafrost. Periglacial blockfields in the Appalachian Mountains serve effectively as indicators of Pleistocene permafrost conditions. Internet-based VGs can be used to create generalized reconnaissance-level data bases of large-scale periglacial landforms and hillslope features over large areas. Complementary use of Virtual Globes technology and spatial-analytic techniques holds considerable potential for addressing the broad-scale problems with which traditional climatic geomorphology is concerned.