This glossary provides the NRCS soil survey program, soil scientists, and natural resource specialists with landform, geologic, and related terms and their definitions to:
Improve soil landscape description with a standard, single source landform and geologic glossary;
Enhance geomorphic content and clarity of soil map unit descriptions by use of accurate, defined terms;
Establish consistent geomorphic term usage in soil science and the National Cooperative Soil Survey (NCSS);
Provide standard geomorphic definitions for databases and soil survey technical publications; and
Train soil scientists and related professionals in soils as landscape and geomorphic entities.
629.01 Responsibilities
This glossary serves as the official NCSS reference for landform, geologic, and related terms. The staff of the National Soil Survey Center, located in Lincoln, NE, is responsible for maintaining and updating this glossary. Soil scientists at the MLRA soil survey offices and NCSS participants are encouraged to propose additions and changes to the glossary for use in pedon descriptions, soil map unit descriptions, and soil survey publications. The Glossary of Geology (GG, 2005) serves as a major source for many glossary terms. The American Geologic Institute (AGI) granted USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (formerly Soil Conservation Service) permission (in letters dated 9/11/85 and 9/22/93) to use existing definitions. Modifications to original AGI definitions are explained below.
629.02 Definitions
(a) Reference codes
Sources from which definitions were taken, whole or in part, are identified by a code (e.g., GG) following each definition. Underlined codes (e.g., GG) signify a definition modification form the original source. The reference codes are:
BHM - Buol, S.W., Hole, F.D., McCracken, R.J., and Southard, R.J. 1997. Soil genesis and classification, 4th Ed. Iowa State University Press, Ames, IA; 527 p.
CC - Cowardin, L.M., Carter, V., Golet, F.C., and Laroe, E.T. 1979. Classification of wetlands and deepwater habitats of the United States. US Dept. Interior, US Fish and Wildlife Service, US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC.
CF - Clayton, L. and Freers, T.F. (eds.) 1967. Glacial geology of the Missouri Coteau and adjacent areas. Guidebook 18th annual field conference Midwest Friends of the Pleistocene. North Dakota Geological Survey Miscellaneous Series #30, 170 p.
CV - Cruden, D.M., and Varnes, D.J. 1996. Landslide types and processes. In: Turner, A.K., and Schuster, R.L., (eds). 1996. Landslides: investigations and mitigation. National Research Council, Transportation Research Board Special Report No. 247; National Academy Press, Washington, DC; 673 p.
DV - Varnes, D. 1978. Slope movement types and processes. In: Schuster, R.L., and R.J. Krizek. (eds). 1978. Landslides: analysis and control. National Academy Sciences, Transportation Research Board Special Report No. 176; 234 p.
FC - Freeze, A.L. and Cherry, J.A. 1979. Groundwater. Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, NJ. 604 p.
FFP - Peterson, F.F. 1981. Landforms of the Basin and Range Province defined for soil survey. Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station Technical Bulletin No. 28, Reno, NV. 52 p.
GG - Neuendorf, K.K.E., Mehl Jr., J.P., and Jackson, J.A. (ed.) 2005. Glossary of geology, 5th Ed. American Geological Institute, Alexandria, VA. 779 p.
GG87 - Bates, R.L., and Jackson, J.A. (ed) 1987. Glossary of geology, 3rd Ed. American Geological Institute, Alexandria, VA. 788 p.
GHG - Gile, L.H., Hawley, J.W., and Grossman, R.B. 1981. Soils and geomorphology in the Basin and Range area of southern New Mexico – Guidebook to the Desert Project. Memoir 39. New Mexico Bureau of Mines & Mineral Resources, Socorro, NM; 222 p.
GM - Goldthwaite, R.P. and Matsch, C.L. (eds.) 1988. Genetic classification of glaciogenic deposits: final report of the commission on genesis and lithology of glacial Quaternary deposits of the International Union for Quaternary Research (INQUA). A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam; 294 p.
GS - Green, J., and Short, N.M. 1971. Volcanic landforms and surface features: A photographic atlas and glossary. Springer – Verlag, New York, NY. 519 p.
GSST - Soil Science Society of America. 2008. Glossary of Soil Science terms. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI. 92 p.
HD - Holdorf, H. and Donahue, J. 1990. Landforms for soil surveys in the Northern Rockies. Montana Forest and Conservation Experiment Station, School of Forestry, University of Montana, Misc. Publ. No. 51. 26 p.
HF - Fisk, H.N. 1959. Padre Island and the Laguna Madre flats, coastal south Texas. Louisiana State University, 2nd Coastal Geography Conference; pp. 103-151.
HP - Hawley, J.W., and Parsons, R.B. 1980. Glossary of selected geomorphic and geologic terms. Mimeo. USDA Soil Conservation Service, West National Technical Center, Portland, OR. 30 p.
HS - Sigurdsson, H., (ed). 2000. Encyclopedia of volcanoes. Academic Press, Inc., San Diego, USA. ISBN# 0-12-643140-X
ICOMANTH - International Committee for Anthropogenic Soils. 2012. Circular Letter 7, Proposed Revisions to NSSH Part 629 (working draft), 13 p.
KST - Soil Survey Staff. 1994. Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Sixth edition. USDA - Soil Conservation Service (p. 30).
MA - MacDonald, G.A. and A.T. Abbott. 1970. Volcanoes in the sea, the geology of Hawaii. University of Hawaii Press, 441 p.
NL - Lancaster, N. 1995. Geomorphology of desert dunes. Routledge, New York, NY. 209 p.
NRC - National Research Council of Canada. 1988. Glossary of permafrost and related ground ice terms. Associate Committee Geotechnical Research, Technical Memorandum 142; 156 p.
RD - Daniels, Raymond B. (personal communication).
RF - Fairbridge, R.W. (ed.). Encyclopedia of geomorphology. 1968. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series, vol. 3. Reinhold Book Corporation, New York, NY.
RR - Ruhe, R.V. 1975. Geomorphology: Geomorphic processes and surficial geology. Houghton-Mifflin, Boston, MA, 246 p.
SJ - Sugden, D.E. and John, B.S. 1976. Glaciers and landscape, a geomorphological approach. Halsted Press, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, NY, 376 p.
SS - Summer, M.E., and Stewart, B.A. (eds). 1992. Soil crusting in Australia. In: Soil crusting: chemical and physical process. Advances in Soil Science, Lewis Publishing, Boca Raton, FL.
SSM - Soil Survey Division Staff. 1993. Soil survey manual. Soil Conservation Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture Handbook No. 18, U.S. Gov. Print. Office, Washington, DC.
SSS - Subaqueous Soils Subcommittee. 2005. Glossary of terms for subaqueous soils, landscapes, landforms, and parent materials of estuaries and lagoons. National Cooperative Soil Survey Conference, USDA-NRCS, National Soil Survey Center, Lincoln, NE.
ST - Soil Survey Staff. 1999. Soil taxonomy: A basic system of soil classification for making and interpreting soil surveys. 2nd edition. Natural Resources Conservation Service. U.S. Department of Agriculture Handbook 436.
SW - Schoeneberger, P.J. and Wysocki, D.A. 2013. (personal communication), National Soil Survey Center, NRCS, Lincoln, NE.
WA - Way, D.S. 1973. Terrain analysis. Harvard University, Dowden, Hutchinson & Ross, Inc., Stroudsburg, PA. 392 p.
WT - Thornbury, W.D. 1969. Principles of geomorphology; 2nd Ed. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, NY; 594 p.
WW - White, W.B. 1988. Geomorphology and hydrology of karst terrains. Oxford Univ. Press, New York, NY; 478 p.
(b) Clarifying comments included with glossary definitions
(not recommended) use – denotes an unacceptable term (obsolete, poorly-defined, or erroneous) that should not be used. The glossary provides alternative terms.
(not preferred) refer to – denotes a technically acceptable, but poorly-defined or outdated term that should be avoided to prevent confusion and redundancy. Preferred alternatives are provided.
(colloquial: ) – denotes a regionally-derived or applied term and identifies the region where it has been used. A colloquial term is either not widely accepted or unknown outside the geographic area where it originates. A colloquial term should be avoided if a more widely recognized alternative exists.
Compare – Follows a term definition and indicates additional glossary entries that are similar or related to that term.
Colman, S.M. and Dethier, D.P. (eds.) 1986. Rates of chemical weathering of rocks and minerals. Academic Press, Inc., Orlando, FL. 603 p.
Compton, R.R. 1985. Geology in the field. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, NY; 398 p.
Cooke, R.U. and Warren, A.. 1973. Geomorphology in deserts. University of California Press, Berkeley, CA; 374 p.
Cowardin, L.M., Carter, V., Golet, F.C., and Laroe, E.T. 1979. Classification of wetlands and deepwater habitats of the United States. US Dept. Interior, US Fish and Wildlife Service, US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC.
Cruden, D.M. and Varnes, D.J. 1996. Landslide types and processes. In: Turner, A.K., and Schuster, R.L. , (eds). 1996. Landslides: investigations and mitigation. National Research Council, Transportation Research Board Special Report No. 247; National Academy Press, Washington, DC; 673 p.
Curran, H.A., Justus, P.S., Young, D.M., and Garver, J.B. 1984. Atlas of landforms, 3rd Ed. US Military Academy, West Point, NY, Dept Geography and Computer Science; 155 p.
Daniels, Dr. Raymond B. 1992. (Personal communication). Head (retired), Soil Survey Investigations, USDA - Soil Conservation Service, Washington, D.C.
Daniels, R.B., and Hammer, D.. 1992. Soil geomorphology. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, NY.
Davis, R.A. 1994. Barrier island systems - a geologic overview. P. 1-46. In: Davis, R.A. ed.) 1994. Geology of Holocene barrier island systems. Springer-Verlag, New York, NY.
Demas, G.P. 1998. Subaqueous soil of Sinepuxent Bay, Maryland. PhD dissertation, Department of Natural Resources and Landscape Architecture, University of Maryland, College Park, MD.
Dixon, J.B., and Weed, S.B. (eds.) 1989. Minerals in the soil environment, 2nd Ed. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI, Book Series, No. 1; 1244 p.
Dutro, J.T., Dietrich, R.V., Foose, R.M. 1989. AGI field data sheets: for geology in the field, laboratory and office, 3rd Ed. American Geological Institute, Alexandria, VA.
Fisher, J.J., and Simpson, E.J. 1979. Washover and tidal sedimentation rates as environmental factors in development of a transgressive barrier shoreline; pp.127-148. In: Leatherman, S.P. (ed.) 1979. Barrier islands from the Gulf of St Lawrence to the Gulf of Mexico. Academic Press, New York, NY.
Fisk, H.N. 1959. Padre Island and the Laguna Madre flats, coastal south Texas. Louisiana State University, 2nd Coastal Geography Conference; pp. 103-151.
Gile, L.H., Hawley, J.W., and Grossman, R.B. 1981. Soils and geomorphology in the Basin and Range area of southern New Mexico- guidebook to the Desert Project. Memoir 39. New Mexico Bureau of Mines & Mineral Resources, Socorro, NM; 222 p.
Gile, L.H. and Ahrens, R.J., (eds.) 1994. Supplement to the desert project soil monograph: Soils and landscapes of a desert region astride the Rio Grande Valley near Las Cruces, New Mexico. USDA - Soil Conservation Service, Soil Survey Investigations Report No. 44, vol. 1: Soil water and soils at the soil water sites, Jornada experiment range. National Soil Survey Center, Lincoln, NE; 592 p.
Goldthwaite, R.P. and Matsch, C.L, (eds.) 1988. Genetic classification of glacigenic deposits: final report of the commission on genesis and lithology of glacial Quaternary deposits of the International Union for Quaternary Research (INQUA). A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam; 294 p.
Graf, W.L. (ed.) 1987. Geomorphic systems of North America. Geological Society America, Decade of North American Geology, Centennial Special Volume, No. 2.; 643 p.
Hamblin, W.K. and Howard, J.D.. 1995. Exercises in physical geology, 8th Ed. Burgess Publ. Co., Minneapolis, MN; 192 p.
Harland, W.B., Armstrong, R.L., Craig, L.E., Smith, A.G., and Smith, D.G. 1990. A geologic time scale. Press Syndicate of University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; 1 sheet.
Holdorf, H. and Donahue, J. 1990. Landforms for soil surveys in the Northern Rockies. Montana Forest and Conservation Experiment Station, School of Forestry, University of Montana, Misc. Publ. No. 51; 26 p.
Hunt, C.B. 1986. Surficial deposits of the United States. Van Nos Reinhold Co., Inc., New York, NY; 208 p.
Jackson, J.A.. (ed.). 1997. Glossary of geology, 4th Ed. American Geological Institute, Alexandria, VA; 769 p. ISBN 0-922152-34-9
Kidder, David L. 1987. Stratigraphy, micropaleontology, petrography, carbonate geochemistry, and depositional history of the Proterozoic Libby Formation, Belt Supergroup, northwestern Montana and northeastern Idaho. USGS Open File Report 87-635. US Dept of Interior.
Lancaster, N. 1995. Geomorphology of desert dunes. Routledge, New York, NY. 209 p.
Mausbach, M.J. and Wilding, L.P. (eds.) 1991. Spatial variabilities of soils and landforms. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI, Special Publication No.28; 270 p.
Maxwell, D.T. 1973. Layer silicate mineralogy of the Precambrian Belt Series in Belt Symposium sponsored by the Dept of Geology, Univ. of Idaho and the Idaho Bur. of Mines and Geology, Sept 17-22, 1973. vol II, pp. 114-138.
McGinn, S.R. 1982. Facies distribution of Ninigret Pond. Masters thesis, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI.
Monroe, W.H. 1976. The karst landforms of Puerto Rico. US Geological Survey Professional Paper 899, U.S. Govt. Print. Office, Washington, DC.
Monroe, W.H. 1980. Some tropical landforms of Puerto Rico. US Geological Survey Professional Paper 1159, U.S. Govt. Print. Office, Washington, DC.
Morrison, R.B. (ed.) 1991. Quaternary nonglacial geology: conterminous United States. Geological Society of America, Decade of North American Geology, Geology of North America, Vol. K-2; 672 p.
National Research Council of Canada. 1988. Glossary of permafrost and related ground ice terms. Associate Committee Geotechnical Research, Technical Memorandum 142; 156 p.
Neuendorf, K.K.E., Mehl, J.P., Jr., Jackson, J. 2005. Glossary of geology, 5th Ed. American Geological Institute, Alexandria, VA. ISBN 0-922152-76-4
Nordt, J.S., Sowers, J.M., and Lettis, W.R. 2000. Quaternary geochronology. AGU Reference Shelf 4, American Geophysical Union, Washington, DC; (ISBN 0-87590-950-7); 582 p.
Peterson, F.F. 1981. Landforms of the Basin and Range Province defined for soil survey. Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station, Technical Bulletin No. 28, Reno, NV; 52 p.
Peterson, F.F. 1990. A manual for describing NSSL soil sampling sites: Terms and concepts for identifying physiographic position and other sampling site descriptors; Draft ver. 1.0; USDA-NRCS National Soil Survey Laboratory, Lincoln, NE; 61 p. [unpublished]
Porter, S.C. (ed.) 1983. Late-quaternary environments of the United States, Vol. 1: the late Pleistocene. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, MN. 277 p.
Ritter, D.F., Kochel, R.C., and Miller, J.R. 1995. Process geomorphology, 3rd Ed. Wm C. Brown Publ.; Dubuque, IA; 539 p.
Royse, C.F. and Barsch, D. 1971. Terraces and pediment terraces in the southwest: an interpretation. Geological Society of America Bulletin, 82:3177-3182.
Schoeneberger, P.J. and Wysocki, D.A. 2012. Geomorphology. In: Schoeneberger, P.J., Wysocki, D.A., Benham, E.C., and Soil Survey Staff. 2012. Field book for describing and sampling soils, version3.0. National Soil Survey Center, Natural Resources Conservation Service, USDA, Lincoln, NE.
Schoeneberger, P.J. and Wysocki, D.A. 2000. (personal communication). National Soil Survey Center, USDA - NRCS, Lincoln, NE.
Schoeneberger, P.J., Wysocki, D.A., Benham, E.C., and Soil Survey Staff. 2012. Field book for describing and sampling soils, version 3.0. National Soil Survey Center, Natural Resources Conservation Service, USDA, Lincoln, NE.
Schumm, S.A. 1977. The fluvial system. John Wiley & Sons., Inc., New York, NY; 338 p.
Schumm, S.A. 1987. Experimental fluvial geomorphology. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, NY; 413 p.
Schumm, S.A. 1991. To interpret the earth: 10 ways to be wrong. Cambridge Univ. Press; 180 p.
Schumm, S.A., Harvey, M.D., and Watson, C.C. 1984. Incised channels: morphology, dynamics, and control. Water Resources Publications, Littleton, CO; 200 p.
Schuster, R.L. and Krizek, R.J. (eds.) 1978. Landslides: analysis and control. National Academy Sciences, Transportation Research Board Special Report No. 176; 234 p.
Selby, M.J. 1993. Hillslope materials and processes, 2nd Ed. Oxford University Press Inc., New York; 451 p.
Sibrava, V., Bowen, D.Q., and Richmond, D.Q. (eds.) 1986. Quaternary glaciations in the Northern Hemisphere: final report of the International Geological Correlation Programme, Project 24. Quaternary Science Reviews, Vol. 5, Pergamon Press, Oxford; 514 p.
Smith, G.D. 1978. The Andisol proposal. In: Leamy, M.L., Kinlock, D.I., and Parfitt, R.L. International Committee on Andisols – Final Report. Soil Management Support Services Technical Monograph #20 (p. 5). USDA – Soil Conservation Service, Washington, D.C.
Soil Science Society of America. 2001. Glossary of soil science terms. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI; 135 p.
Soil Survey Division Staff. 1993. Soil survey manual. Soil Conservation Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture Handbook No. 18, U.S. Gov Print Office, Washington, DC; 437 p.
Soil Survey Staff. 1999. Soil taxonomy: A basic system of soil classification for making and interpreting soil surveys. 2nd edition. Natural Resources Conservation Service. U.S. Department of Agriculture Handbook 436.
Sposito, G. 1989. The chemistry of soils. Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford; 277 p.
Strahler, A.N. and Strahler, A.H. 1989. Elements of physical geography, 4th Ed. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, NY.
Subaqueous Soils Subcommittee. 2005. Glossary of terms for subaqueous soils, landscapes, landforms, and parent materials of estuaries and lagoons. National Cooperative Soil Survey Conference, USDA-NRCS, National Soil Survey Center, Lincoln, NE.
Sugden, D.E. and John, B.S. 1976. Glaciers and landscape, a geomorphological approach. Halsted Press, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, NY; 376 p.
Summer, M.E. and Stewart, B.A. (eds.) 1992. Soil crusting in Australia. In: Soil crusting: chemical and physical process. Advances in Soil Science, Lewis Publishing, Boca Raton, FL.
Trewartha, G.T., Robinson, A.H., Hammond, E.H., and Horn, A.T. 1976. Fundamentals of physical geography, 3rd Ed. McGraw-Hill, New York, NY.; 384 p.
Turner, A.K., and Schuster, R.L. (eds.) 1996. Landslides: investigations and mitigation. National Research Council, Transportation Research Board Special Report No. 247; National Academy Press, Washington, DC; 673 p.
U.S. Geological Survey. 1970. The national atlas of the United States. (sheets 61-63: Classes of Land-Surface from E.H. Hammond). U.S. Geological Survey, Washington, DC; 417 p.
Wahrhaftig, C. 1965. Physiographic divisions of Alaska. US Geological Survey, USGS Professional Paper # 482; 52 p.
Washburn, A.L. 1973. Periglacial processes and environments. St. Martin's Press, New York, NY; 320 p.
Washburn, A.L. 1980. Geocryology. John Wiley and Sons, New York, NY.; 406 p.
Wells, D.V., Conkwright, R.D., Hill, J.M., and Park, M.J. 1994. The surficial sediments of Assawoman Bay and Isle of Wight Bay, Maryland: Physical and chemical characteristics. Coastal and Estuarine Geology File Report Number 94-2, Maryland Geological Survey, Baltimore, MD.
White, W.B. 1988. Geomorphology and hydrology of karst terrains. Oxford Univ. Press, New York, NY; 478 p.
Wright, H.E. (ed.) 1983. Late-Quaternary environments of the United States, Vol. 2: the Holocene. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, MN. 277 p.
Wysocki, D.A., Schoeneberger, P.J., and LaGarry, H.E. 2000. Geomorphology of soil landscapes. In: Sumner, M.E., editor. Handbook of Soil Science. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton, FL. ISBN: 0-8493-3136-6
(b) Classic references
[Significant references that are out of print and no longer commercially available]
Balster, C.A. and Parsons, R.B. 1968. Geomorphology and soils, Willamette Valley, Oregon. Oregon State Univ., Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station Special Report 265, Corvallis, OR; 31 p.
Buol, S.W., Hole, F.D., and McCracken, R.J. 1973 (1st ed), 1980 (2nd ed.), 1989 (3rd ed.). Soil genesis and classification. Iowa State University Press, Ames, IA.
(now Buol, Southard, Graham, and McDaniel 2003)
Birkeland, P.W. 1974. Pedology, weathering and geomorphic research. Oxford University Press, New York, NY ; 285 p. (see Birkeland, 1999)
Birkeland, P.W. 1984. Soils and geomorphology, 2nd Ed. Oxford University Press; 386 p. (see Birkeland, 1999)
Bryan, K. 1946. Cryopedology: The study of frozen ground and intensive frost-action, with suggestions on nomenclature. American Journal of Science, V. 244; 642 p.
Clayton, L. and Freers, T.F. (eds.) 1967. Glacial geology of the Missouri Coteau and adjacent areas. Guidebook 18th annual field conference Midwest Friends of the Pleistocene. North Dakota Geological Survey Miscellaneous Series #30, 170 p.
Compton, R.R. 1962. Manual of field geology. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, NY; 378 p. (use Compton, 1985, Geology in the Field).
Compton, R.R. 1977. Interpreting the earth. Harcourt-Brace-Jovanovich, New York, NY; 554 p.
Daniels, R.B. and Jordan, R.H. 1966. Physiographic history and the soils, entrenched stream systems, and gullies, Harrison County, Iowa. USDA - Soil Conservation Service, Technical Bulletin 1348; 133 p.
Fairbridge, R.W. (ed.) 1968. The encyclopedia of geomorphology. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series, Vol. 3. McGraw-Hill Company, Inc., New York, NY; 1295 p.
Fenneman, N.M. 1931. Physiography of the western United States. McGraw-Hill Co., New York, NY; 534 p.
Fenneman, N.M. 1938. Physiography of the eastern United States. McGraw-Hill Co., New York, NY.; 714 p.
Fenneman, N.M. 1946. (reprinted 1957). Physical divisions of the United States. US Geological Survey, US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC; 1 sheet; 1: 7,000,000.
Flint, R.F. 1971. Glacial and Quaternary geology. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, NY; 892 p.
Freeze, A.L. and Cherry, J.A. 1979. Groundwater. Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, NJ.; 604 p.
Gary, M., McAfee, R., Jr., Wolf, C.L. (eds.) 1974. Glossary of geology. American Geological Institute, Falls Church, VA; 805 p. (use Bates & Jackson, 1987).
Green, J., and Short, N.M. 1971. Volcanic landforms and surface features: A photographic atlas and glossary. Springer-Verlag, New York, NY. 519 p.
Hawley, J.W. and Parsons, R.B. 1980. Glossary of selected geomorphic and geologic terms. Mimeo. U.S. Dept. Agric., Soil Cons. Serv., West Technical Center, Portland, OR; 30 p. (replaced by National Soil Survey Handbook (NSSH), Part 629, 1995).
Hunt, C.B. 1967. Physiography of the United States. W.H. Freeman & Co., London; 480 p.
Monkhouse, F. 1978. Dictionary of geography. Aldine Publ. Co., Chicago, IL.; 344 p.
Monkhouse, F. and Small, J. 1978. Dictionary of the natural environment. John Wiley & Sons, Inc., New York, NY; 320 p.
Peterson, F.F. 1981. Landforms of the Basin and Range Province defined for soil survey. Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station, Technical Bulletin No. 28, Reno, NV; 52 p.
Ruhe, R.V. 1969. Quaternary landscapes in Iowa. Iowa State University Press, Ames, IA; 255 p.
Ruhe, R.V. 1975. Geomorphology: geomorphic processes and surficial geology. Houghton-Mifflin Co., Boston, MA; 246 p.
Ruhe, R.V., Daniels, R.B., and Cady, J.G. 1967. Landscape evolution and soil formation in southeastern Iowa. USDA - Soil Conservation Service Technical Bulletin 1349; 242 p.
Russel, R.J. (ed.) 1968. Glossary of terms used in fluvial, deltaic, and coastal morphology. Louisiana State Univ., New Orleans, LA.; Coastal Studies Institute Technical Report No. 63; 97 p.
Soil Survey Staff. 1975. Soil Taxonomy. A basic system of soil classification for making and interpreting soil surveys. USDA - Soil Conservation Service, Agricultural Handbook #436, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC, 754 p.
Strahler, A.N. 1946 Geomorphic terminology and classification of land masses. Journal of Geology 54:35-42.
Thornbury, W.D. 1969. Principles of geomorphology; 2nd Ed. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, NY; 594 p.
Thornbury, W.D. 1965. Regional geomorphology of the United States. John Wiley and Sons, Inc., New York, NY; 609 p.
Varnes, D. 1978. Slope movement types and processes. In: Schuster, R.L. and R.J. Krizek (eds.) 1978. Landslides: analysis and control. National Academy Sciences, Transportation Research Board Special Report No. 176; 234 p.
Exhibit 629-1—Lists of Landscape, Landform, Microfeature, and Anthropogenic Feature Terms Contained in the Glossary
(Subset lists arranged by geomorphic process or other groups.) Geomorphic process is a framework for the Geomorphic Description System (Schoeneberger and Wysocki, 2012).
Note: Words enclosed in brackets are considered part of the name of a term such as “bay [coast]”. Words enclosed in parentheses are only accessory information and are not part of the name of a term such as “(water body; also Landform)”. Following the terms are letters for the corresponding shorthand code such as BO for the landscape term “bolson”).
Landscapes (broad or unique regional groups of spatially-associated landforms).
alluvial plain
AP
alluvial plain remnant
AR
badlands
BA
bajada (also Landform)
BJ
barrier island (also Landform)
BI
basin
BS
basin floor (also Landform)
BC
batholith
BL
bay [coast] (water body; also Landform)
BY
bolson
BO
breached anticline (also Landform)
BD
breaklands
BR
breaks (also Landform)
BK
caldera (also Landform)
CD
canyonlands
CL
coastal plain (also Landform)
CP
cockpit karst
CPK
cone karst
CK
continental glacier
CG
delta plain (also Landform)
DP
dissected breaklands
DB
dissected plateau
DI
drumlin field
DF
dune field (also Landform)
DU
estuary (water body; also Landform)
ES
everglades
EG
fan piedmont (also Landform)
FP
fault-block mountains
FM
fluviokarst
FK
fluviomarine terrace (also Landform)
FT
fold-thrust hills
FTH
foothills
FH
glaciokarst
GK
gulf (water body; also Landform)
GU
hills (singular = Landform)
HI
ice-margin complex
IC
intermontane basin (also Landform)
IB
island (also Landform)
IS
karst
KR
kegel karst
KK
lagoon (water body; also Landform)
LG
lake plain (also Landform)
LP
lava field (also Landform)
LF
lava plain (also Landform)
LV
lava plateau (also Landform)
LL
lowland
LW
marine terrace (also Landform)
MT
meander belt
MB
mountain range
MR
mountain system
MS
mountains (singular = Landform)
MO
ocean (water body)
OC
outwash plain (also Landform)
OP
peninsula
PE
piedmont
PI
piedmont slope
PS
plains (singular = Landform)
PL
plateau (also Landform)
PT
rift valley
RF
river valley (also Landform)
RV
sand plain
SP
sandhills
SH
scabland
SC
sea (water body; also Landform)
SEA
semi-bolson
SB
shield volcano (also Landform)
SV
shore complex (also Landform)
SX
sinkhole karst
SK
sound (water body; also Landform)
SO
strait (water body; also Landform)
ST
tableland
TB
thermokarst
TK
till plain (also Landform)
TP
tower karst
TW
upland
UP
valley (also Landform)
VA
volcanic field (also Landform)
VF
Landforms (natural, individual, earth-surface features mappable at soil survey scales).
aa lava flow
ALF
alas
AA
alluvial cone
AC
alluvial fan
AF
alluvial flat
AP
alpine glacier
AG
anticline
AN
arete
AR
arroyo
AY
ash field
AQ
ash flow
AS
atoll
AT
avalanche chute
AL
axial stream
AX
back-barrier beach
BBB
back-barrier flat
BBF
backshore
AZ
backswamp
BS
bajada (also Landscape)
BJ
ballena
BL
ballon
BV
bar
BR
barchan dune
BQ
barrier beach
BB
barrier beach [relict]
BBR
barrier cove
BAC
barrier flat
BF
barrier island (also Landscape)
BI
basin floor (also Landscape)
BC
basin-floor remnant
BD
bay [coast] (water body; also Landscape)
BAY
bay [geom.]
BYG
bay bottom
BOT
bayou (water body)
WC
beach
BE
beach plain
BP
beach ridge
BG
beach terrace
BT
berm
BM
beveled base
BVB
blind valley
VB
block field
BW
block glide
BLG
block lava flow
BLF
block stream
BX
blowout
BY
bluff
BN
bog
BO
box canyon
BOX
braided stream
BZ
breached anticline (also Landscape)
BRL
breaks (also Landscape)
BK
broad interstream divide
BID
butte
BU
caldera (also Landscape)
CD
canyon
CA
canyon bench
CYB
canyon wall
CW
Carolina Bay
CB
channel (also Microfeature)
CC
chenier
CG
chenier plain
CH
cinder cone
CI
cirque
CQ
cirque floor
CFL
cirque headwall
CHW
cirque platform
CPF
cliff
CJ
climbing dune
CDU
closed depression (also Microfeature)
CLD
coastal plain (also Landscape)
CP
cockpit
COC
col
CL
collapse sinkhole
CSH
collapsed ice-floored lakebed
CK
collapsed ice-walled lakebed
CN
collapsed lake plain
CS
collapsed outwash plain
CT
colluvial apron
COA
complex landslide
CLS
coral island
COR
coulee
CE
cove
CO
cove [water] (water body)
COW
crag and tail
CAT
creep
CRE
crevasse filling
CF
cuesta
CU
cuesta valley
CUV
cutoff
CV
debris avalanche
DA
debris fall
DEF
debris flow
DF
debris slide
DS
debris spread
DES
debris topple
DET
deflation basin
DB
deflation flat
DFL
delta
DE
delta plain (also Landscape)
DC
depression
DP
diapir
DD
diatreme
DT
dike
DK
dip slope
DL
disintegration moraine
DM
distributary
DIS
divide
DN
dome
DO
drainageway
DQ
drainhead complex
DRC
draw
DW
drumlin
DR
drumlinoid ridge
DRR
dune
DU
dune field (also Landscape)
DUF
dune lake (water body)
DUL
dune slack (also Microfeature)
DUS
earth spread
ESP
earth topple
ETO
earthflow
EF
end moraine
EM
ephemeral stream (also Microfeature)
EPS
eroded fan remnant
EFR
eroded fan remnant sideslope
EFS
erosion remnant
ER
escarpment
ES
esker
EK
estuary (water body; also Landscape)
WD
faceted spur
FS
fall
FB
falling dune
FDU
fan
FC
fan apron
FA
fan collar
FCO
fan piedmont (also Landscape)
FG
fan remnant
FH
fan skirt
FI
fanhead trench
FF
fault block
FAB
fault zone
FAZ
fault-line scarp
FK
fen
FN
fissure vent
FIV
fjord (water body)
FJ
flat
FL
flatwoods
FLW
flood plain
FP
flood-plain playa
FY
flood-plain splay
FM
flood-plain step
FO
flood-tidal delta
FTD
flood-tidal delta flat
FTF
flood-tidal delta slope
FTS
flow
FLO
flute (also Microfeature)
FU
fluviomarine bottom
FMB
fluviomarine terrace (also Landscape)
FMT
fold
FQ
foredune
FD
fosse
FV
free face (also Geom. Component – Hills, Mountains)
FW
fringe-tidal marsh
FTM
gap
GA
geyser
GE
geyser basin
GEB
geyser cone
GEC
giant ripple
GC
glacial drainage channel
GD
glacial lake (water body)
WE
glacial lake [relict]
GL
glacial-valley floor
GVF
glacial-valley wall
GVW
glacier
GLA
gorge
GO
graben
GR
ground moraine
GM
gulch
GT
gulf (water body; also Landscape)
GU
gut [channel] (water body; also Microfeature)
WH
gut [valley]
GV
half graben
HG
hanging valley
HV
headland
HE
head-of-outwash
HD
headwall
HW
high hill
HH
highmoor bog
HB
hill (plural=Landscape)
HI
hillslope
HS
hogback
HO
homoclinal ridge
HCR
homocline
HC
horn
HR
horst
HT
hot spring
HP
ice pressure ridge
IPR
ice-contact slope
ICS
ice-marginal stream
IMS
ice-pushed ridge
IPU
inlet
IL
inselberg
IN
inset fan
IF
interdrumlin
IDR
interdune (also Microfeature)
ID
interfluve (also Geom. Component - Hills)
IV
interior valley
INV
intermittent stream (also Microfeature)
INT
intermontane basin (also Landscape)
IB
island (also Landscape)
IS
kame
KA
kame moraine
KM
kame terrace
KT
karst cone
KC
karst lake
KAL
karst tower
KTO
karst valley
KVA
karstic marine terrace
KMT
kettle
KE
kipuka
KIP
knob
KN
knoll
KL
lagoon (water body; also Landscape)
WI
lagoon bottom
LBO
lagoon channel
LCH
lagoon [relict]
LAR
lahar
LA
lake (water body)
WJ
lake plain (also Landscape)
LP
lake terrace
LT
lakebed (water body)
LB
lakebed [relict]
LBR
lakeshore
LF
landslide
LK
lateral moraine
LM
lateral spread
LS
lava dome
LD
lava field (also Landscape)
LFI
lava flow
LC
lava flow unit (also Microfeature)
LFU
lava plain (also Landscape)
LN
lava plateau (also Landscape)
LL
lava trench (also Microfeature)
LTR
lava tube
LTU
ledge
LE
levee
LV
loess bluff
LO
loess hill
LQ
longitudinal dune
LDU
longshore bar
LON
longshore bar [relict]
LR
louderback
LU
low hill
LH
lowmoor bog
LX
maar
MAA
main scarp (also Microfeature)
MAS
mainland cove
MAC
mangrove swamp
MAN
marine lake (water body)
ML
marine terrace (also Landscape)
MT
marsh
MA
mawae
MAW
meander
MB
meander scar
MS
meander scroll
MG
meandering channel
MC
medial moraine
MH
mesa
ME
meteorite crater
MEC
mogote
MOG
monadnock
MD
monocline
MJ
moraine
MU
mountain (plural = Landscape)
MM
mountain slope
MN
mountain valley
MV
mud pot
MP
mudflow
MW
muskeg
MX
natural levee
NL
nearshore zone
NZ
nearshore zone [relict]
NZR
notch
NO
nunatak
NU
open depression (also Microfeature)
ODE
outwash delta
OD
outwash fan
OF
outwash plain (also Landscape)
OP
outwash terrace
OT
overflow stream channel
OSC
oxbow
OX
oxbow lake (water body)
WK
paha
PA
pahoehoe lava flow
PAF
paleoterrace
PTR
parabolic dune
PB
parna dune
PD
partial ballena
PF
patterned ground
PG
pavement karst
PAV
peak
PK
peat plateau
PJ
pediment
PE
perennial stream (water body; also Microfeature)
PS
pillow lava flow
PIF
pingo
PI
pinnacle (also Microfeature)
PIN
pitted outwash plain
PM
pitted outwash terrace
POT
plain (plural = Landscape)
PN
plateau (also Landscape)
PT
playa
PL
playa dune (also Microfeature)
PDU
playa floor (also Microfeature)
PFL
playa lake (water body)
WL
playa rim (also Microfeature)
PRI
playa slope (also Microfeature)
PSL
playa step (also Microfeature)
PST
plug dome
PP
pluvial lake (water body)
PLL
pluvial lake [relict]
PQ
pocosin
PO
point bar
PR
point bar [coastal]
PRC
pothole (also Microfeature)
PH
pothole lake (water body)
WN
proglacial lake (water body)
WO
proglacial lake [relict]
PGL
pyroclastic flow
PCF
pyroclastic surge
PCS
raised beach
RA
raised bog
RB
ravine
RV
recessional moraine
RM
reef
RF
ribbed fen
RG
ridge
RI
rim
RJ
rise (also Microfeature; also Geom. Component – Flat Plains)
RIS
river (water body)
RIV
river valley (also Landscape)
RVV
roche moutonnée (also Microfeature)
RN
rock glacier
RO
rock pediment
ROP
rock spread
ROS
rock topple
ROT
rockfall (also Microfeature)
ROF
rockfall avalanche
RFA
rotational debris slide
RDS
rotational earth slide
RES
rotational rock slide
RRS
rotational slide
RTS
sabkha
SAB
saddle
SA
sag (also Microfeature)
SAG
sag pond (water body; also Microfeature)
SGP
salt marsh
SM
salt pond (water body; also Microfeature)
WQ
sand flow (also Microfeature)
RW
sand ramp
SAR
sand sheet
RX
scarp
RY
scarp slope
RS
scree slope
SCS
sea (water body; also Landscape)
SEA
sea cliff
RZ
seep (also Microfeature)
SEE
seif dune
SD
semi-open depression
SOD
shield volcano (also Landscape)
SHV
shoal (water body)
WR
shoal [relict]
SE
shore
SHO
shore complex (also Landscape)
SHC
sill
RT
sinkhole
SH
slackwater (water body)
WS
slickrock (also Microfeature)
SLK
slide
SJ
slot canyon
SLC
slough (water body)
SL
slump block
SN
snowfield
SNF
soil fall
SOF
solution platform
SOP
solution sinkhole
SOS
sound (water body; also Landscape)
SO
spit
SP
spur
SQ
stack [coast]
SRC
stack [geom.]
SR
star dune
SDU
steptoe
ST
stock
STK
stoss and lee
SAL
strait (water body; also Landscape)
STT
strand plain
SS
strath terrace
SU
stratovolcano
SV
stream (water body)
STR
stream terrace
SX
strike valley
STV
string bog
SY
structural bench
SB
submerged back-barrier beach
SBB
submerged mainland beach
SMB
submerged point bar [coast]
SPB
submerged wave-built terrace
SWT
submerged wave-cut platform
SWP
submerged-upland tidal marsh
STM
swale (also Microfeature)
SC
swallow hole
TB
swamp
SW
syncline
SZ
talus cone
TC
talus slope
TAS
tarn (water body; also Microfeature)
TAR
terminal moraine
TA
terrace
TE
terrace remnant
TER
thermokarst depression (also Microfeature)
TK
thermokarst lake (water body)
WV
tidal flat
TF
tidal inlet
TI
tidal inlet [relict] (water body)
TIR
tidal marsh
TM
till plain (also Landscape)
TP
till-floored lake plain
TLP
toe (also Microfeature)
TOE
tombolo
TO
topple
TOP
tor
TQ
Toreva block
TOR
translational debris slide
TDS
translational earth slide
TES
translational rock slide
TRS
translational slide
TS
transverse dune
TD
trough
TR
tunnel valley
TV
tunnel-valley lake (water body)
TVL
underfit stream
US
U-shaped valley
UV
valley (also Landscape)
VA
valley flat
VF
valley floor
VL
valley side
VS
valley train
VT
valley-border surfaces
VBS
valley-floor remnant
VFR
volcanic cone
VC
volcanic crater
CR
volcanic dome
VD
volcanic field (also Landscape)
VOF
volcanic neck
VON
volcanic pressure ridge (also Micro.)
PU
volcano
VO
V-shaped valley
VV
wash
WA
washover fan
WF
washover-fan flat
WFF
washover-fan slope
WFS
water-lain moraine
WM
wave-built terrace
WT
wave-cut platform
WP
wave-worked till plain
WW
wind gap
WG
window
WIN
wind-tidal flat
WTF
yardang (also Microfeature)
YD
yardang trough (also Microfeature)
YDT
Microfeatures (discrete, natural, earth-surface features too small to delineate at common survey scales).
Common microfeatures (not used in association with the landform “patterned ground”)
bar
BA
channel (also Landform)
CH
closed depression (also Landform)
CD
corda
CO
cutter
CU
dune slack (also Landform)
DS
dune traces
DT
earth pillar
EP
ephemeral stream (also Landform)
ES
finger ridge
FR
flute (also Landform)
FL
frost boil
FB
glacial groove
GG
groove
GR
gully
GU
gut [channel] (water body; also Landform)
WH
hillock
HI
hoodoo
HO
ice wedge
IWD
ice wedge cast
IWC
interdune (also Landform)
ID
intermittent stream (water body; also Landform)
INT
karren
KA
lava flow unit (also Landform)
LFU
lava trench (also Landform)
LT
main scarp (also Landform)
MAS
minor scarp
MIS
mound
MO
nivation hollow
NH
open depression (also Landform)
OP
perennial stream (water body; also Landform)
PS
pinnacle (also Landform)
PI
playa dune (also Landform)
PD
playa floor (also Landform)
PF
playa rim (also Landform)
PR
playa slope (also Landform)
PSL
playa step (also Landform)
PST
playette
PL
pond (water body)
PON
pool (water body)
POO
pothole (also Landform)
PH
rib
RB
rill
RL
ripple mark
RM
rise (also Landform; ; also Geom. Component – Flat Plains)
RIS
roche moutonnée (also Landform)
POC
rockfall (also Landform)
ROF
sag (also Landform)
SAG
sag pond (water body; also Landform)
SP
salt pond (water body; also Landform)
WQ
sand boil
SB
sand flow (also Landform)
RW
seep (also Landform)
SE
shoreline
SH
shrub-coppice dune
SCD
slickrock (also Landform)
SLK
slip face
SF
solifluction lobe
SOL
solifluction sheet
SS
solifluction terrace
ST
solution chimney
SCH
solution corridor
SCO
solution fissure
SOF
solution pipe
SOP
spatter cone
SPC
spiracle
SPI
strandline
SL
swale (also Landform)
SW
swash zone
SZ
tank (water body)
TA
tarn (water body; also Landform)
TN
terracettes
TER
thermokarst depression (also Landform)
TK
toe (also Landform)
TOE
tree-tip mound
TTM
tree-tip pit
TTP
tumulus (tumuli = plural)
TU
vernal pool (seasonal water body)
VP
volcanic pressure ridge (also Landform)
VPR
yardang (also Landform)
YD
yardang trough (also Landform)
YDT
zibar
ZB
Periglacial patterned ground microfeatures [used in association with the landform “patterned ground”; Singular forms (e.g., circle) are used for a single feature at point data scale whereas plural forms (e.g., circles) are used for map unit components.]
circle
CI
earth hummock
EH
high-center polygon
HCP
ice wedge polygon
IWP
low-center polygon
LCP
nonsorted circle
NSC
palsa (= peat hummock)
PA
polygon
PYG
sorted circle
SCI
stripe
STR
turf hummock
TH
Other patterned ground microfeatures [used in association with the landform “patterned ground”; Singular forms (e.g., hummock) are used for a single feature at point data scale whereas plural forms (e.g., hummocks) are used for map unit components.]
bar and channel
BC
circular gilgai
CG
elliptical gilgai
EG
gilgai
GI
hummock
HU
linear gilgai
LG
mima mound
MM
pimple mound
PM
puff
PU
Anthropogenic Features [discrete, artificial (human-made), earth-surface features].
anthroscape
ANT
artificial collapsed depression
ACD
artificial levee
AL
beveled cut
BC
bioswale
BS
borrow pit
BP
burial mound
BM
conservation terrace (modern)
CT
cut (railroad, etc.)
CUT
cutbank
CB
ditch
DI
double-bedding mound
DBM
drainage ditch
DD
dredge spoil bank
DSB
dredged channel
DC
dredge-deposit shoal
DDS
dump
DU
fill
FI
filled marshland
FM
floodway
FW
furrow
FR
gravel pit
GP
headwall (anthro)
HW
hillslope terrace (ancient)
HT
impact crater
IC
interfurrow
IF
leveled land
LVL
log landing
LL
midden
MI
openpit mine
OM
polder
POL
pond (human-made)
PO
quarry
QU
railroad bed
RRB
reclaimed land
RL
rice paddy
RP
road bed
RB
road cut
RC
sand pit
SP
sanitary landfill
SL
scalped area
SA
sewage lagoon
SWL
skid trail
ST
spoil bank
SB
spoil pile
SPP
surface mine
SM
tillage mound
TM
truncated soil
TS
Geomorphic Process and Other Groups [Landscape, Landform, and Microfeature terms grouped by geomorphic process (e.g., Fluvial) or by common settings (e.g., Water Bodies). These lists provide common examples, but are not mutually exclusive so some features occur in more than one group.]
Coastal Marine and Estuarine (wave or tidal control on near-shore / shallow marine).
Landscapes:
barrier island (also Landform)
BI
bay [coast] (water body; also Landform)
BY
coastal plain (also Landform)
CP
delta plain (also Landform)
DP
estuary (water body; also Landform)
ES
fluviomarine terrace (also Landform)
FT
gulf (water body; also Landform)
GU
island (also Landform)
IS
lagoon (water body; also Landform)
LG
lowland
LW
marine terrace (also Landform)
MT
ocean (water body)
OC
peninsula
PE
sea (water body; also Landform)
SEA
shore complex (also Landform)
SX
sound (water body; also Landform)
SO
strait (water body; also Landform)
ST
Landforms:
atoll
AT
back-barrier beach
BBB
back-barrier flat
BBF
backshore
AZ
bar
BR
barrier beach
BB
barrier cove
BAC
barrier flat
BF
barrier island (also Landscape)
BI
bay [coast] (water body; also Landscape)
BAY
bay bottom
BOT
beach
BE
beach plain
BP
beach ridge
BG
beach terrace
BT
berm
BM
bluff
BN
chenier
CG
chenier plain
CH
coastal plain (also Landscape)
CP
coral island
COR
cove [water] (water body)
COW
delta
DE
delta plain (also Landscape)
DC
drainhead complex
DRC
estuary (water body; also Landform)
WD
flat
FL
flatwoods
FLW
fluviomarine terrace (also Landscape)
FMT
foredune
FD
fringe-tidal marsh
FTM
gulf (water body; also Landscape)
GU
gut [channel] (also Microfeature)
WH
headland
HE
island (also Landscape)
IS
lagoon (water body; also Landscape)
WI
lagoon [relict]
LAR
longshore bar
LON
longshore bar [relict]
LR
mangrove swamp
MAN
marine lake (water body)
ML
marine terrace (also Landscape)
MT
nearshore zone
NZ
nearshore zone [relict]
NZR
point bar [coastal]
PRC
raised beach
RA
reef
RF
sabkha
SAB
salt marsh
SM
sea (water body; also Landscape)
SEA
sea cliff
RZ
semi-open depression
SOD
shoal [relict]
SE
shore
SHO
shore complex (also Landscape)
SHC
sound (water body; also Landscape)
SO
spit
SP
stack [coast]
SRC
strait (water body; also Landscape)
STT
strand plain
SS
submerged-upland tidal marsh
STM
tidal flat
TF
tidal inlet
TI
tidal inlet [relict]
TIR
tidal marsh
TM
tombolo
TO
washover fan
WF
wave-built terrace
WT
wave-cut platform
WP
wind-tidal flat
WTF
Microfeatures:
gut [channel] (also Landform)
WH
ripple mark
RM
shoreline
SH
swash zone
SZ
Lacustrine (related to inland water bodies).
Landscapes:
bay [coast] (also Landform)
BY
delta plain (also Landform)
DP
island (also Landform)
IS
lake plain (also Landform)
LP
peninsula
PE
shore complex (also Landform)
SX
Landforms:
backshore
AZ
bar (also Microfeature)
BR
barrier beach
BB
barrier flat
BF
barrier island
BI
bay [coast] (water body; also Landscape)
BAY
beach
BE
beach plain
BP
beach ridge
BG
beach terrace
BT
berm
BM
bluff
BN
delta
DE
delta plain (also Landscape)
DC
flat
FL
flood-plain playa
FY
foredune
FD
headland
HE
island (also Landscape)
IS
karst lake
KAL
lagoon
WI
lagoon [relict]
LAR
lake (water body)
WJ
lake plain (also Landscape)
LP
lake terrace
LT
lakebed
LB
lakebed [relict]
LBR
lakeshore
LF
longshore bar
LON
longshore bar [relict]
LR
oxbow lake
WK
playa
PL
playa floor (also Microfeature)
PFL
playa lake
WL
playa rim (also Microfeature)
PRI
playa slope (also Microfeature)
PSL
playa step (also Microfeature)
PST
pluvial lake
PLL
pluvial lake [relict]
PQ
raised beach
RA
sabkha
SAB
salt marsh
SM
shoal [relict]
SE
shore
SHO
shore complex (also Landscape)
SHC
spit
SP
stack [coast]
SRC
strand plain
SS
till-floored lake plain
TLP
tombolo
TO
water-lain moraine
WM
wave-built terrace
WT
wave-cut platform
WP
wave-worked till plain
WW
Microfeatures:
bar (also Landform)
BA
playa floor (also Landform)
PF
playa rim (also Landform)
PR
playa slope (also Landform)
PSL
playa step (also Landform)
PST
playette
PL
ripple mark
RM
shoreline
SH
strandline
SL
swash zone
SZ
vernal pool
VP
Fluvial [dominantly related to concentrated water flow (channel flow); includes erosional and depositional features, but excluding glaciofluvial landforms (see Glacial), and permanent water features (see Water Bodies)].
Landscapes:
alluvial plain
AP
alluvial plain remnant
AR
badlands
BA
bajada (also Landform)
BJ
breaks
BK
breaklands
BR
canyonlands
CL
delta plain (also Landform)
DP
dissected breaklands
DB
fan piedmont
FP
meander belt
MB
river valley (also Landform)
RV
scabland
SC
Landforms:
alluvial cone
AC
alluvial fan
AF
alluvial flat
AP
arroyo
AY
axial stream (water body)
AX
backswamp
BS
bajada (also Landscape)
BJ
bar (also Microfeature)
BR
basin-floor remnant
BD
block stream
BX
box canyon
BOX
braided stream
BZ
canyon
CA
channel
CC
coulee
CE
cutoff
CV
delta
DE
delta plain (also Landscape)
DC
drainageway
DQ
drainhead complex
DRC
draw
DW
ephemeral stream (also Microfeature)
EPS
fan apron
FA
fan collar
FCO
fan remnant
FH
fan skirt
FI
fanhead trench
FF
flood plain
FP
flood-plain playa
FY
flood-plain splay
FM
flood-plain step
FO
giant ripple
GC
gorge
GO
gulch
GT
gut [valley]
GV
inset fan
IF
intermittent stream (also Microfeature)
INT
levee
LV
meander scar
MS
meander scroll
MG
meandering channel
MC
natural levee
NL
overflow stream channel
OSC
oxbow
OX
paleoterrace
PTR
point bar
PR
ravine
RV
river valley (also Landscape)
RVV
semi-open depression
SOD
slot canyon
SLC
strath terrace
SU
stream terrace
SX
terrace remnant
TER
valley flat
VF
valley-border surfaces
VBS
valley-floor remnant
VFR
wash
WA
wind gap
WG
Microfeatures:
bar (also Landform)
BA
bar and channel
BC
channel
CH
ephemeral stream (also Landform)
ES
groove
GR
gully
GU
intermittent stream (also Landform)
INT
ripple mark
RM
swash zone
SZ
Solution (dominated by dissolution, and commonly, subsurface drainage).
Landscapes:
cockpit karst
CPK
cone karst
CK
fluviokarst
FK
glaciokarst
GK
karst
KR
kegel karst
KK
sinkhole karst
SK
thermokarst
TK
tower karst
TW
Landforms:
blind valley
VB
cockpit
COC
collapse sinkhole
CSH
interior valley
INV
karst cone
KC
karst lake (water body)
KAL
karst tower
KTO
karst valley
KVA
karstic marine terrace
KMT
mogote
MOG
pavement karst
PAV
pinnacle
PIN
sinkhole
SH
solution platform
SOP
solution sinkhole
SOS
swallow hole
TB
thermokarst depression (also Microfeature)
TK
yardang (also Microfeature)
YD
yardang trough (also Microfeature)
YDT
Microfeatures:
cutter
CU
karren
KA
solution chimney
SCH
solution corridor
SCO
solution fissure
SOF
solution pipe
SOP
thermokarst depression (also Landform)
TK
yardang (also Landform)
YD
yardang trough (also Landform)
YDT
Eolian (dominantly wind related erosion or deposition).
Landscapes:
dune field (also Landform)
DU
sand plain
SP
sandhills
SH
Landforms:
barchan dune
BQ
blowout
BY
climbing dune
CDU
deflation basin
DB
deflation flat
DFL
dune
DU
dune field (also Landscape)
DUF
dune lake (water body)
DUL
dune slack (also Microfeature)
DUS
falling dune
FDU
foredune
FD
interdune (also Microfeature)
ID
loess bluff
LO
loess hill
LQ
longitudinal dune
LDU
paha
PA
parabolic dune
PB
parna dune
PD
playa dune (also Microfeature)
PDU
sabkha
SAB
sand ramp
SAR
sand sheet
RX
seif dune
SD
slickrock (also Microfeature)
SLK
star dune
SDU
transverse dune
TD
yardang (also Microfeature)
YD
yardang trough (also Microfeature)
YDT
Microfeatures:
dune slack (also Landform)
DS
dune traces
DT
interdune (also Landform)
ID
playa dune (also Landform)
PD
playette
PL
shrub-coppice dune
SCD
slickrock (also Landform)
SLK
slip face
SF
yardang (also Landform)
YD
yardang trough (also Landform)
YDT
zibar
ZB
Glacial (directly related to glaciers; includes glaciofluvial, glaciolacustrine, glaciomarine, and outwash features).
Landscapes:
continental glacier
CG
drumlin field
DF
glaciokarst
GK
hills
HI
ice-margin complex
IC
outwash plain (also Landform)
OP
till plain (also Landform)
TP
Landforms:
alpine glacier
AG
arete
AR
cirque
CQ
cirque floor
CFL
cirque headwall
CHW
cirque platform
CPF
col
CL
collapsed ice-floored lakebed
CK
collapsed ice-walled lakebed
CN
collapsed lake plain
CS
collapsed outwash plain
CT
crag and tail
CAT
crevasse filling
CF
disintegration moraine
DM
drumlin
DR
drumlinoid ridge
DRR
end moraine
EM
esker
EK
fjord (water body)
FJ
flute (also Microfeature)
FU
fosse
FV
giant ripple
GC
glacial drainage channel
GD
glacial lake (water body)
WE
glacial lake [relict]
GL
glacial-valley floor
GVF
glacial-valley wall
GVW
glacier
GLA
ground moraine
GM
hanging valley
HV
head-of-outwash
HD
ice pressure ridge
IPR
ice-contact slope
ICS
ice-marginal stream
IMS
ice-pushed ridge
IPU
interdrumlin
IDR
kame
KA
kame moraine
KM
kame terrace
KT
kettle
KE
lateral moraine
LM
medial moraine
MH
moraine
MU
nunatak
NU
outwash delta
OD
outwash fan
OF
outwash plain (also Landscape)
OP
outwash terrace
OT
paha
PA
pitted outwash plain
PM
pitted outwash terrace
POT
pothole (also Microfeature)
PH
pothole lake (intermittent water)
WN
proglacial lake (water body)
WO
proglacial lake [relict]
PGL
recessional moraine
RM
roche moutonnée (also Microfeature)
RN
rock glacier
RO
snowfield
SNF
stoss and lee
SAL
swale (also Microfeature)
SC
tarn (water body; also Microfeature)
TAR
terminal moraine
TA
till plain (also Landscape)
TP
till-floored lake plain
TLP
tunnel valley
TV
tunnel-valley lake (water body)
TVL
underfit stream
US
U-shaped valley
UV
valley train
VT
water-lain moraine
WM
wave-worked till plain
WW
Microfeatures:
flute (also Landform)
FL
glacial groove
GG
ice wedge
IWD
ice wedge cast
IWC
nivation hollow
NH
pothole (also Landform)
PH
roche moutonnée (also Landform)
POC
swale (also Landform)
SW
tarn (water body; also Landform)
TN
Periglacial [related to non-glacial, cold climate (modern or relict), including periglacial forms of patterned ground. Note: consider “patterned ground” as a Landform, but treat specific types of patterned ground, (singular or plural), as Microfeatures.]
Landscapes:
coastal plain
CP
hills
HI
plains
PL
thermokarst
TK
Landforms:
alas
AA
block field
BW
muskeg
MX
patterned ground
PG
peat plateau
PJ
pingo
PI
rock glacier
RO
string bog
SY
thermokarst depression (also Microfeature)
TK
thermokarst lake (water body)
WV
Microfeatures:
circle
CI
earth hummock
EH
frost boil
FB
high-center polygon
HCP
ice wedge
IWD
ice wedge cast
IWC
ice wedge polygon
IWP
low-center polygon
LCP
nivation hollow
NH
nonsorted circle
NSC
palsa (= peat hummock)
PA
polygon
PYG
solifluction lobe
SOL
solifluction sheet
SS
solifluction terrace
ST
sorted circle
SCI
stripe
STR
thermokarst depression (also Landform)
TK
turf hummock
TH
Mass Movement (Mass Wasting) (dominated by gravity, including creep forms).
Landscapes: (these generic landscapes are not mass movement features per say, but are commonly modified by, and include localized areas of, mass movement).
breaklands
BR
dissected breaklands
DB
foothills
FH
hills
HI
mountain range
MR
mountains
MO
Landforms:
ash flow
AS
avalanche chute
AL
block glide
BLG
block stream
BX
colluvial apron
COA
complex landslide
CLS
creep
CRE
debris avalanche
DA
debris fall
DEF
debris flow
DF
debris slide
DS
debris spread
DES
debris topple
DET
earth spread
ESP
earth topple
ETO
earthflow
EF
fall
FB
flow
FLO
lahar
LA
landslide
LK
lateral spread
LS
main scarp (also Microfeature)
MAS
mudflow
MW
rock glacier
RO
rock spread
ROS
rock topple
ROT
rockfall (also Microfeature)
ROF
rockfall avalanche
RFA
rotational debris slide
RDS
rotational earth slide
RES
rotational rock slide
RRS
rotational slide
RTS
sag (also Microfeature)
SAG
sag pond (water body; also Micro.)
SGP
sand flow
RW
scree slope
SCS
slide
SJ
slump block
SN
soil fall
SOF
talus cone
TC
talus slope
TAS
toe (also Microfeature)
TOE
topple
TOP
Toreva block
TOR
translational debris slide
TDS
translational earth slide
TES
translational rock slide
TRS
translational slide
TS
Microfeatures:
main scarp (also Landform)
MAS
minor scarp
MIS
rockfall (also Landform)
ROF
sag (also Landform)
SAG
sag pond (water body; also Landform)
SP
sand boil
SB
solifluction lobe
SOL
solifluction sheet
SS
solifluction terrace
ST
terracette
TER
toe (also Landform)
TOE
Volcanic and Hydrothermal
Landscapes:
caldera (also Landform)
CD
foothills
FH
hills
HI
lava field (also Landform)
LF
lava plain (also Landform)
LV
lava plateau (also Landform)
LL
mountains
MO
shield volcano (also Landform)
SV
volcanic field (also Landform)
VF
Landforms:
aa lava flow
ALF
ash field
AQ
ash flow
AS
block lava flow
BLF
caldera (also Landscape)
CD
cinder cone
CI
diatreme
DT
dike
DK
fissure vent
FIV
geyser
GE
geyser basin
GEB
geyser cone
GEC
hot spring
HP
kipuka
KIP
lahar
LA
lava dome
LD
lava field (also Landscape)
LFI
lava flow
LC
lava flow unit (also Microfeature)
LFU
lava plain (also Landscape)
LN
lava plateau (also Landscape)
LL
lava trench (also Microfeature)
LTR
lava tube
LTU
louderback
LU
maar
MAA
mawae
MAW
mud pot
MP
pahoehoe lava flow
PAF
pillow lava flow
PIF
plug dome
PP
pyroclastic flow
PCF
pyroclastic surge
PCS
shield volcano (also Landscape)
SHV
steptoe
ST
stratovolcano
SV
volcanic cone
VC
volcanic crater
CR
volcanic dome
VD
volcanic field (also Landscape)
VOF
volcanic neck
VON
volcanic pressure ridge (also Micro.)
PU
volcano
VO
Microfeatures:
corda
CO
lava flow unit (also Landform)
LFU
lava trench (also Landform)
LT
spatter cone
SPC
spiracle
SPI
tumulus (tumuli = plural)
TU
volcanic pressure ridge (also Landform)
VPR
Tectonic and Structural (related to regional or local bedrock structures, or crustal movement. In soil survey information, tectonic and structural features are only recognized if they have some expression at or near the land surface).
Landscapes:
basin floor
BC
batholith
BL
bolson
BO
breached anticline (also Landform)
BD
dissected plateau
DI
fault-block mountains
FM
fold-thrust hills
FTH
foothills
FH
hills
HI
intermontane basin
IB
mountain range
MR
mountain system
MS
mountains
MO
piedmont slope
PS
plateau
PT
rift valley
RF
semi-bolson
SB
tableland
TB
valley
VA
Landforms:
anticline
AN
breached anticline (also Landscape)
BRL
canyon bench
CYB
cuesta
CU
cuesta valley
CUV
diapir
DD
dike
DK
dip slope
DL
dome
DO
fault block
FAB
fault zone
FAZ
fault-line scarp
FK
fold
FQ
graben
GR
half graben
HG
hogback
HO
homoclinal ridge
HCR
homocline
HC
horst
HT
louderback
LU
meteorite crater
MEC
monocline
MJ
rock pediment
ROP
scarp slope
RS
sill
RT
stock
STK
strike valley
STV
structural bench
SB
syncline
SZ
window
WIN
Microfeatures:
sand boil
SB
Slope (generic terms or those that describe slope form, geometry, or arrangement of land features, rather than any particular genesis or process).
Landscapes:
badlands
BA
breached anticline (also Landform)
BD
breaklands
BR
breaks
BK
canyonlands
CL
dissected breaklands
DB
dissected plateau
DI
fault-block mountains
FM
foothills
FH
hills (singular = Landform)
HI
mountain range
MR
mountain system
MS
mountains
MO
piedmont
PI
piedmont slope
PS
plains (singular = Landform)
PL
plateau (also Landform)
PT
tableland
TB
upland
UP
Landforms:
beveled base
BVB
block stream
BX
bluff
BN
breached anticline (also Landscape)
BRL
broad interstream divide
BID
butte
BU
canyon bench
CYB
canyon wall
CW
cliff
CJ
colluvial apron
COA
cuesta
CU
dome
DO
escarpment
ES
faceted spur
FS
fault block
FAB
fault-line scarp
FK
free face (also Geom. Component – Hills, Mountains.)
FW
gap
GA
headwall
HW
high hill
HH
hill (plural = Landscape)
HI
hillslope
HS
hogback
HO
interfluve (also Geom. Component - Hills)
IV
knob
KN
knoll
KL
ledge
LE
low hill
LH
mesa
ME
mountain (plural = Landscape)
MM
mountain slope
MN
mountain valley
MV
notch
NO
paha
PA
peak
PK
pediment
PE
plain (plural = Landscape)
PN
plateau (also Landscape)
PT
ridge
RI
rim
RJ
rock pediment
ROP
scarp
RY
scarp slope
RS
scree slope
SCS
slickrock (also Microfeature)
SLK
spur
SQ
stack [geom.]
SR
structural bench
SB
talus cone
TC
talus slope
TAS
tor
TQ
valley
VA
valley-floor remnant
VFR
wind gap
WG
Microfeatures:
finger ridge
FR
mound
MO
rib
RB
rill
RL
slickrock (also Landform)
SLK
Erosional (related dominantly to water erosion but excluding perennial, concentrated channel flow (i.e., fluvial, glaciofluvial) or eolian erosion).
Landscapes:
badlands
BA
breached anticline (also Landform)
BD
breaklands
BR
breaks
BK
canyonlands
CL
dissected breaklands
DB
dissected plateau
DI
foothills
FH
hills
HI
mountain range
MR
mountains
MO
piedmont
PI
piedmont slope
PS
plateau (also Landform)
PT
tableland
TB
Landforms:
ballena
BL
ballon
BV
basin-floor remnant
BD
beveled base
BVB
breached anticline (also Landscape)
BRL
canyon bench
CYB
canyon wall
CW
col
CL
colluvial apron
COA
cuesta
CU
cuesta valley
CUV
eroded fan remnant
EFR
eroded fan-remnant sideslope
EFS
erosion remnant
ER
free face (also Geom. Comp. – Hills, Mountains)
FW
gap
GA
hogback
HO
inselberg
IN
monadnock
MD
notch
NO
paha
PA
partial ballena
PF
peak
PK
pediment
PE
plateau (also Landscape)
PT
rock pediment
ROP
sabkha
SAB
saddle
SA
scarp slope
RS
slickrock (also Microfeature)
SLK
stack [geom.]
SR
strike valley
STV
structural bench
SB
terrace remnant
TER
tor
TQ
valley-border surfaces
VBS
valley-floor remnant
VFR
wind gap
WG
window
WIN
Microfeatures:
earth pillar
EP
finger ridge
FR
groove
GR
gully
GU
hoodoo
HO
pinnacle
PI
rib
RB
rill
RL
slickrock (also Landform)
SLK
swale
SW
Depressional (low area or declivity features, excluding permanent water bodies)
Landscapes:
basin
BS
basin floor (also Landform)
BC
bolson
BO
breached anticline (also Landform)
BD
breaklands
BR
dissected breaklands
DB
semi-bolson
SB
valley
VA
Landforms:
alluvial flat
AP
basin floor (also Landscape)
BC
basin-floor remnant
BD
box canyon
BOX
breached anticline (also Landscape)
BRL
canyon
CA
Carolina Bay
CB
closed depression (also Microfeature)
CLD
col
CL
coulee
CE
cove
CO
cuesta valley
CUV
depression
DP
drainageway
DQ
drainhead complex
DRC
gap
GA
gorge
GO
gulch
GT
gut [valley]
GV
intermontane basin
IB
kettle
KE
mountain valley
MV
open depression (also Microfeature)
ODE
playa
PL
playa floor (also Microfeature)
PFL
playa rim (also Microfeature)
PRI
playa slope (also Microfeature)
PSL
playa step (also Microfeature)
PST
pothole (also Microfeature)
PH
pothole lake (intermittent water)
WN
ravine
RV
sabkha
SAB
saddle
SA
sag (also Microfeature)
SAG
semi-open depression
SOD
slot canyon
SLC
strike valley
STV
swale (also Microfeature)
SC
trough
TR
U-shaped valley
UV
valley
VA
valley floor
VL
V-shaped valley
VV
Microfeatures:
closed depression (also Landform)
CD
open depression (also Landform)
OP
playa floor (also Landform)
PF
playa rim (also Landform)
PR
playa slope (also Landform)
PSL
playa step (also Landform)
PST
playette
PL
pothole (also Landform)
PH
sag (also Landform)
SAG
swale (also Landform)
SW
tree-tip pit
TTP
Wetlands [related to vegetated and / or shallow wet areas, and wet soils. (Provisional list: conventional, geologic definitions; not legalistic or regulatory usage)].
Landscapes (generally, there is no appropriate Landscape term for wetlands; by default, choose the most appropriate Landscape term from another Process Environment or Other Grouping):
estuary (also Landform)
ES
everglades
EG
Landforms:
alas
AA
backswamp
BS
bog
BO
Carolina Bay
CB
dune slack (also Microfeature)
DUS
ephemeral stream (also Microfeature)
EPS
estuary (also Landscape)
WD
fen
FN
flood-plain playa
FY
fringe-tidal marsh
FTM
highmoor bog
HB
intermittent stream (also Microfeature)
INT
lowmoor bog
LX
mangrove swamp
MAN
marsh
MA
muskeg
MX
oxbow lake (intermittent water)
WK
peat plateau
PJ
playa (intermittent water)
PL
pocosin
PO
pothole (also Microfeature)
PH
pothole lake (intermittent water)
WN
raised bog
RB
ribbed fen
RG
sabkha
SAB
salt marsh
SM
slough (intermittent water)
SL
string bog
SY
swamp
SW
tidal flat
TF
tidal marsh
TM
Microfeatures:
dune slack (also Landform)
DS
ephemeral stream (also Landform)
ES
intermittent stream (also Landform)
INT
playette
PL
pothole (also Landform)
PH
vernal pool (seasonal water)
VP
Water Bodies [Discrete “surface water” features, primarily permanent open water, which in soil survey reports are commonly treated as the generic map unit “water” (e.g., lake), or as a spot / line symbol (e.g., perennial stream)]. Several water body“landscape” and “landform” terms are obviously not terrestrial, but are Earth surface features (e.g., ocean).
Landscapes:
bay [coast] (also Landform)
BY
estuary (also Landform)
ES
gulf (also Landform)
GU
lagoon (also Landform)
LG
ocean
OC
sea (also Landform)
SEA
sound (also Landform)
SO
strait (also Landform)
ST
Landforms:
axial stream
AX
bay [coast] (also Landscape)
BAY
bayou
WC
cove [water]
COW
dune lake
DUL
estuary (also Landscape)
WD
fjord
FJ
glacial lake
WE
gulf (also Landscape)
GU
gut [channel] (also Microfeature)
WH
ice-marginal stream
IMS
inlet
IL
lagoon (also Landscape)
WI
lagoon channel
LCH
lake
WJ
lakebed
LB
marine lake
ML
nearshore zone
NZ
oxbow lake
WK
perennial stream (also Microfeature)
PS
playa lake
WL
pluvial lake
PLL
pothole lake
WN
proglacial lake
WO
river
RIV
sag pond (also Microfeature)
SGP
salt pond (also Microfeature)
WQ
sea (also Landscape)
SEA
shoal
WR
slackwater
WS
slough
SL
sound (also Landscape)
SO
strait (also Landscape)
STT
stream (permanent water)
STR
tarn (also Microfeature)
TAR
thermokarst lake
WV
tidal inlet
TI
tidal inlet [relict]
TIR
tunnel-valley lake
TVL
Microfeatures:
channel (permanent water)
CH
gut [channel] (also Landform)
WH
perennial stream (also Landform)
PS
pond
PON
pool
POO
sag pond (also Landform)
SP
salt pond (also Landform)
WQ
tank
TA
tarn (also Landform)
TN
Subaqueous Features [Discrete, relatively shallow underwater features that commonly can support rooted plants, and adjacent features, ordinarily found below permanent open water. Historically, in Soil Survey Reports these underwater features have been included in the generic map unit “water”]. Subaqueous “landscape” terms are obviously not terrestrial, but are Earth surface features.
Landscapes:
bay [coast] (water body; also Landform)
BY
estuary (water body; also Landform)
ES
gulf (water body; also Landform)
GU
lagoon (water body; also Landform)
LG
ocean (water body)
OC
sea (water body; also Landform)
SEA
sound (water body; also Landform)
SO
strait (water body; also Landform)
ST
Landforms:
barrier cove
BAC
bay [coast] (water body; also Landscape)
BAY
bay bottom
BOT
cove [water] (water body)
COW
estuary (water body; also Landscape)
WD
flood-tidal delta
FTD
flood-tidal delta flat
FTF
flood-tidal delta slope
FTS
fluviomarine bottom
FMB
gulf (water body; also Landscape)
GU
inlet
IL
lagoon (water body; also Landscape)
WI
lagoon bottom
LBO
lagoon channel
LCH
lake
WJ
lakebed (water body)
LB
longshore bar
LON
mainland cove
MAC
marine lake
ML
nearshore zone
NZ
reef
RF
sea (water body; also Landscape)
SEA
shoal
WR
sound (water body; also Landscape)
SO
strait (water body; also Landscape)
STT
submerged back-barrier beach
SBB
submerged mainland beach
SMB
submerged point bar [coast]
SPB
submerged wave-built terrace
SWT
submerged wave-cut platform
SWP
tidal inlet
TI
tidal inlet [relict]
TIR
washover-fan flat
WFF
washover-fan slope
WFS
Microfeatures:
channel (permanent water)
CH
gut [channel] (water body)
WH
Anthropogenic Features:
dredged channel
DC
dredge-deposit shoal
DDS
Exhibit 629-2—List of Materials or Material-Related, Structure, or Morphological-Feature Terms Contained in the Glossary
(NR - terms that are NOT RECOMMENDED; NP - terms that are NOT PREFERRED)
aa lava
ablation till - NP
alluvium
andesitic lahar deposit
anticline
aquiclude
aquifer
aquitard
artifact
ash (volcanic)
ash flow - NP
backswamp deposit
basal till - NP
bauxite
beach sands
bed
bedded
bedding plane
bedrock
block lava
block field
block glide deposit
block stream
blue rock (volcanic)
boulder field - NR
bowl
breccia
buried soil
caliche
caprock
chert
chimney
cinders
clast
clastic
coastal marl
colluvium
complex landslide deposit
conglomerate
continuous permafrost
coprogenous earth
coprogenous material
country rock
craton
creep deposit
cross-bedding
cross-lamination
cross-stratification
cryptogamic crust
cryoturbate
cyclothem
dead-ice - NR
debris
debris avalanche deposit
debris fall deposit
debris flow deposit
debris slide deposit
debris spread deposit
debris topple deposit
deposit
desert pavement
desert varnish - NP
detritus (geology)
diamictite
diamicton
diatomaceous earth
diatomite
dike
dip
discontinuity
discontinuous permafrost
dropstone
dolomite (mineral)
dolomite (rock)
dolostone - NR
dome
dredge spoils
drift (glacial geology)
earthflow deposit
eolian deposit
epiclastic
erosional pavement
erratic
estuarine deposit
facies (stratigraphy)
fanglomerate
felsenmeer - NP
felsic rock
fill
fly ash
flow till
fluviomarine deposit
fold
formation (stratigraphy)
freshwater marl
glacial drift - NR
glacial outwash - NR
glacial till - NR
glaciofluvial deposits
glaciolacustrine deposits
glaciomarine deposits
glauconite pellets
graben
granitoid
greensands
ground soil
grus
gypsite
herbaceous peat
horst
human-transported material
ice-pushed ridge
ice wedge
ice wedge cast
igneous rock
interbedded
intrusive
lacustrine deposit
lagoonal deposit
lahar deposit
lamella
lamina
lamination - NR
lapilli
lateral spread deposit
lava
limestone
limonite
lithologic
lodgment till
loess
louderback
mafic rock
marine deposit
marl
mass movement deposit
melt-out till
metamorphic rock
metasediment
microbiotic crust
mine spoil, coal extraction
mine spoil, metal-ore extraction
mine spoil or earthy fill
moraine
moss peat
muck
mucky peat
mudstone
mudflow deposit
novaculite
nuée ardente
outcrop
outwash
overbank deposit
overburden
overthrust
paleosol
pahoehoe lava
parna
peat
pedisediment
permafrost
pillow lava
pitted outwash
plow pan
pluton
plutonic
porcellanite
puff
pumice
pyroclastic
pyroclastic flow
pyroclastic surge
regolith
relict soil
residuum
rhythmite
rockfall deposit
rockfall avalanche deposit
rock varnish
rotational debris slide deposit
rotational earth slide deposit
rotational rock slide deposit
rotational slide deposit
rubble
sand flow deposit
sand sheet
sandstone
saprolite
scoria
scree
sediment
sedimentary peat
sedimentary rock
shale
siltstone
sill
siltite
slide
slip face
slip surface
slope alluvium
sloughed till - NR
slump - NR
slump block
slump till- NR
soil fall deposit
solifluction deposit
solifluction sheet
spoil bank
spoil pile
sporadic permafrost
stagnant ice
stone line
strandline
subglacial flow till
subglacial melt-out till
subglacial till
supraglacial debris-flow sediment - NP
supraglacial flow till
supraglacial melt-out till
supraglacial till
syncline
talus
tephra
thaw-sensitive permafrost
thaw-stable permafrost
till (glacial)
tombolo
topple deposit
tor
translational debris slide deposit
translational earth slide deposit
translational rock slide deposit
translational slide deposit
tuff
valley fill
valley side alluvium
varve
ventifact
vitric
volcanic block
volcanic bomb
volcanic breccia
volcaniclastic
welded soil
welded tuff
woody peat
Exhibit 629-3—Genesis - Process Terms and Geologic Time Terms Contained in the Glossary
(NR - terms that are NOT RECOMMENDED; NP - terms that are NOT PREFERRED)
aeolian - NR
accretion
active layer
active slope - NR
aggradation
alluvial
angle of repose
avalanche
avulsion
backwearing
block glide
buried
bypassed
cat clay - NR
colluvial
competence
complex landslide
conformity
congelifraction - NP
congeliturbation - NR
constructional (geomorphology)
corrosion
creep
cryoplanation
cryoturbation
cut and fill
debris avalanche
debris flow (mudflow)
debris slide
deflation
degradation
deposition
destructional (geomorphology)
dip (structural geology)
discontinuity
distal
earthflow
Eocene
eolian
erosion
erosional (geomorphology)
exfoliation
exhumed
extramorainic - NP
extramorainal
extrusive
fall
flow
fluvial
frost bursting - NR
frost churning - NR
frost riving - NR
frost shattering
frost splitting - NR
frost stirring - NR
frost weathering - NR
frost wedging - NR
geomorphology
gelifraction - NR
gelivation - NR
glacial
glacial epoch
glacial marine sedimentation
glacial outburst flood
glaciation
Holocene
ice age - NR
ice-rafting
ice segregation
intramorainal
joint
knickpoint
landslide
lateral spread
lithification
mass movement
mass wasting - NP
metastable slope - NR
Miocene
mudflow
nivation
Oligocene
Paleocene
pedoturbation
periglacial
Pleistocene
Pliocene
postglacial - NP
proximal
Quaternary
recent
relict
rockfall
rockfall avalanche
rotational landslide
sand flow
scour
scour and fill
slide
slope wash
slump - NP
soil creep - NP
soil fall
solifluction
strike (structural geology)
storm surge
stratified
stratigraphy
stream order
subaerial
subaqueous
subglacial
superglacial - NR
supraglacial
Tertiary
topple
translation slide
volcanic
weathering
welding
Exhibit 629-4—North American Glacial Episodes and General Geologic Time Scale 1, 2
(Schoeneberger, et al, 2012)
Era
Geologic Period
Geologic Epoch
Sub-Division
O Isotope Stage
Years (BP)
CENOZOIC
QUATERNARY
Holocene
(1)
0 to 10-12 ka*
Late Pleistocene
Late Wisconsin
(2)
10-12 to 28 ka
Middle Wisconsin
(3, 4)
28 to 71 ka
Early Wisconsin
(Late Sangamon)
(5a - 5d)
71 to 115 ka
Sangamon
(5e)
115 to 128 ka
Pleistocene
Late - Mid Pleistocene
(Illinoian)
(6 - 8)
128 to 300 ka
Middle Pleistocene
Middle - Mid Pleistocene
(9 - 15)
300 to 620 ka
Early - Mid Pleistocene
(16 - 19)
620 to 770 ka
Early Pleistocene
770 ka to 2.6 Ma**
TERTIARY
Neogene
Pliocene
2.6 to 5.3 Ma
Miocene
5.3 to 23.0 Ma
Paleogene
Oligocene
23.0 to 33.9 Ma
Eocene
33.9 to 55.8 Ma
Paleocene
55.8 to 65.5 Ma
MESOZOIC
CRETACEOUS
Late Cretaceous
65.5 to 99.6 Ma
Early Cretaceous
99.6 to 145.5 Ma
JURASSIC
145.5 to 201.6 Ma
TRIASSIC
201.6 to 251.0 Ma
PERMIAN
251.0 to 299.0 Ma
PALEOZOIC
PENNSYLVANIAN
299.0 to 318.0 Ma
MISSISSIPPIAN
318.0 to 359.0 Ma
DEVONIAN
359.0 to 416.0 Ma
SILURIAN
416.0 to 444.0 Ma
ORDIVICIAN
444.0 to 488.0 Ma
CAMBRIAN
488.0 to ? 542.0 Ma
PRECAMBRIAN
> ? 542.0 Ma
* ka = x 1,000; **Ma = x 1,000,000
? “approximately” 1 Modified from Morrison, 1991; Sibrava, et al., 1986; and Harland, et al., 1990. 2 Modified from Walker, J.D., and Geidman, J.W. 2009.
References
Harland, W.B., R.L. Armstrong, L.E. Craig, A.G. Smith, and D.G. Smith. 1990. A geologic time scale. Press Syndicate of University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK. 1 sheet.
Morrison, R.B. (ed.). 1991. Quaternary nonglacial geology: conterminous United States. Geological Society of America, Decade of North American Geology, Geology of North America, Vol. K-2. 672 p.
Schoeneberger, P.J., Wysocki, D.A., Benham, E.C., and Soil Survey Staff. 2012. Field book for describing and sampling soils, version 3.0. Natural Resources Conservation Service, USDA, National Soil Survey Center, Lincoln, NE.
Sibrava, V., D.Q. Bowen, and D.Q. Richmond (eds.). 1986. Quaternary glaciations in the Northern Hemisphere: final report of the International Geological Correlation Programme, Project 24. Quaternary Science Reviews, Vol. 5, Pergamon Press, Oxford. 514 p.
Walker, J.D., and Geidman, J.W. 2009. Geologic time scale. Geologic Society America.
Exhibit 629-5—Till Terms
Genetic classification and relationships of till terms commonly used in soil survey. (Schoeneberger, et al., 2002; adapted from Goldthwaite and Matsch, 1988.)
Location
(Facies of tills grouped by position at deposition)
Till Types
Terrestrial
Waterlaid
Proglacial Till
(at the front of, or in front of a glacier)
proglacial flow till
waterlaid flow till
Supraglacial Till
(on top of, or within upper part of a glacier)
supraglacial flow till 1, 3
supraglacial melt-out till 1
(ablation till - NP) 1
(lowered till - NP) 2
(sublimation till - NP) 2
------------
Subglacial Till
(within the lower part of, or beneath a glacier)
lodgment till 1
subglacial melt-out till
subglacial flow till
(=“squeeze till” 2, 3)
(basal till - NP) 1
(deformation till - NP) 2
(gravity flow till - NP) 2
waterlaid melt-out till
waterlaid flow till
iceberg till (=“ice-rafted”)
1Ablation till and basil till are generic terms that only describe “relative position” of deposition and have been widely replaced by more specific terms that convey both relative position and process. Ablation till (any comparatively permeable debris deposited within or above stagnant ice) is replaced by supraglacial melt-out till and supraglacial flow till. Basal till (any dense, nonsorted subglacial till) is replaced by lodgment till, subglacial melt-out till, and subglacial flow till.
2 Additional (proposed) till terms that have not gained wide acceptance, and are therefore considered to be Not Preferred, and should not be used (shown for completeness).
3 Also called gravity flow till (Not Preferred).
References
Goldthwaite, R.P. and Matsch, C.L. (eds.). 1988. Genetic classification of glacigenic deposits: final report of the commission on genesis and lithology of glacial quaternary deposits of the International Union for Quaternary Research (INQUA). A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam. 294 p.
Jackson, J.A. (ed.). 1997. Glossary of geology, 4th Ed. American Geological Institute, Alexandria, VA. 769 p.
Schoeneberger, P.J., Wysocki, D.A., Benham, E.C., and Soil Survey Staff. 2012. Field book for describing and sampling soils, ver. 3.0. Natural Resources Conservation Service, USDA, National Soil Survey Center, Lincoln, NE.
Exhibit 629-6—Pyroclastic Terms
Pyroclastic Terms: Size and compositional relationships of pyroclastic terms commonly used in soil survey. (Schoeneberger, et al., 2012; adapted from Fisher, 1989.)
Pyroclasts and Pyroclastic Deposits (Unconsolidated)
Size scale
<0.062 mm1
<2 mm
<64 mm1
>64 mm1
tephra
(all pyroclastic deposits)
ash
cinders2
(specific gravity > 1.0 & < 2.0)
bombs2
(fluid-shaped fragments)
fine ash
coarse ash
lapilli2
(specific gravity > 2.0)
blocks2
(angular-shaped fragments)
scoria2
(slightly to moderately vesicular fragments; specific gravity > 2.0)
pumiceous ash3
pumice2
(highly vesicular fragments; specific gravity < 1.0)
Associated Lithified (Consolidated) Rock Types
fine tuff1
coarse tuff1
lapillistone1
(specific gravity > 2.0)
pyroclastic breccia
welded tuff
agglomerate
(rounded, volcanic fragments)
ignimbrite
(ash-dominated flows and nuée ardente)
volcanic breccia
(angular, volcanic fragments)
1 These size breaks are taken from geological literature (Fisher, 1989) and based on the modified Wentworth scale. The 0.062 mm break is very close to the USDA’s 0.05 mm break between coarse silt and very fine sand (soil Survey Division Staff, 1993). The 64 mm “geologic break” is relatively close to the USDA’s 75 mm break between coarse gravel and cobbles. [See the chart “Comparison of Particle Size Classes in Different Systems” in the “Profile/Pedon Description Section” under “Soil Texture” in the Field Book for Describing and Sampling Soils (Schoenberger, et al., 2012).]
2 A minimum size limit of 2 mm is required for volcanic fragments (i.e., rock and pararock) in Soil Taxonomy (Soil Survey Staff, 1999), but is not required in geologic usage (Fisher, 1989). Soil Taxonomy also defines the term “pumicelike fragments” for vesicular pyroclastic materials other than pumice that have an apparent specific gravity (including vesicles) of less than 1.0 g/cm3.
3 The general descriptor for pumiceous pyroclasts smaller than 2 mm. Geologic usage is based solely upon composition and does not include any size restrictions.
References
Fisher, R.V. 1989. Pyroclastic sediments and rocks. AGI Data Sheet 25.2. In: Dutro, J.T., R.V. Dietrich, and R.M. Foose. 1989. AGI data sheets for geology in the field, laboratory, and office, 3rd edition. American Geological Institute, Washington, D.C.
Jackson, J.A. (ed.). 1997. Glossary of geology, 4th Ed. American Geological Institute, Alexandria, VA. 769 p.
Schoeneberger, P.J., Wysocki, D.A., Benham, E.C., and Soil Survey Staff. 2012. Field book for describing and sampling soils, ver. 3.0. Natural Resources Conservation Service, USDA, National Soil Survey Center, Lincoln, NE.
Soil Survey Division Staff. 1993. Soil survey manual. Soil Conservation Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture Handbook No. 18.
Soil Survey Staff. 1999. Soil taxonomy: A basic system of soil classification for making and interpreting soil surveys. 2nd edition. Natural Resources Conservation Service. U.S. Department of Agriculture Handbook 436.
