Peneplain

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Peneplain

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A peneplain is the final stage in fluvial

Fluvial

Fluvial is used in geography and earth science to refer to the processes associated with rivers and streams and the deposits and landforms created by them....
or stream erosion

Erosion

For morphological image processing operations, see Erosion 'For use of in dermatopathology, see Erosion Erosion is the removal of solids in the natural environment....
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After the streams in an area have reached base level
Base level

The base level of a river or stream is the lowest point to which it can flow, often referred to as the 'mouth' of the river. For large rivers, sea level is usually the base level, but a large river or lake is likewise the base level for tributary streams....
, lateral erosion is dominant - as the streams erode the highland areas between them. Finally, the upland is almost gone: the stream floodplain

Floodplain

||-||-||-||-||-||-||-||}A floodplain, or flood plain, is flat or nearly flat land adjacent to a stream or river that experiences occasional or periodic flooding....
s merge in an area of very low to no topographic relief

Topography

Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, Natural satellite, and asteroids. It is also the description of such surface shapes and features ....
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Encyclopedia

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A peneplain is the final stage in fluvial

Fluvial

Fluvial is used in geography and earth science to refer to the processes associated with rivers and streams and the deposits and landforms created by them....
or stream erosion

Erosion

Floodplain

Topography

Topography is the study of Earth's surface shape and features or those ofplanets, Natural satellite, and asteroids. It is also the description of such surface shapes and features ....
. The resulting flat plain is the ultimate stage in the cycle of erosion
Cycle of erosion

The cycle of erosion was a model for stream erosion and landscape development proposed by William Morris Davis in the late 1800s. Davis' Stages in the fluvial cycle of erosion published in 1909 defined a young, mature, and old sequence in the development of river valleys and the landscape the rivers were eroding....
or geographical cycle.

The streams within a peneplained region show extensive meander

Meander

A meander in general is a bend in a sinuosity watercourse, also known as an oxbow loop, or simply an oxbow. A meander is formed when the moving water in a river erodes the outer banks and widens its valley creating a meander....
ing and braiding. If the area is subsequently uplifted due to adjacent orogenic

Orogeny

Orogeny refers to natural mountain building, and may be studied as a tectonic structural event, as a geographical event, and a chronological event: orogenic events cause distinctive structural phenomena and related tectonic activity, affect certain regions of rocks and crust, and happen within a specific period of time....
processes, without internal deformation within the peneplain, the streams will again begin downward erosion - creating incised meanders, water gap

Water gap

A water gap is an opening or notch which flowing water has carved through a mountain range. Water gaps often offer a practical route for roads and railroads to cross a mountain ridge....
s, and other unique geomorphic

Geomorphology

Geomorphology is the scientific study of landforms and the processes that shape them. Geomorphologists seek to understand why landscapes look the way they do: to understand landform history and dynamics, and predict future changes through a combination of field observation, physical experiment, and numerical mathematical model....
features.

A peneplain can be mistaken for a depositional plain. However, the rocks beneath a peneplain have been folded and tilted by tectonic forces, while the rocks beneath a depositional plain lie in horizontal layers.

The peneplain concept was developed early in the 1900s by the geomorphologists, William Morris Davis

William Morris Davis

William Morris Davis was an United States geographer, geologist, geomorphologist, and meteorologist, often called the "father of American geography"....
and Walther Penck

Walther Penck

Walther Penck was an Austrian geography, born in Vienna as son of geographer Albrecht Penck.Walther Penck worked 1912-1914 in Argentina as a geographer, and is best known for his contributions to the field of geomorphology....
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