At the margins of the Atacama desert in northeast Chile, wind is thought to carve canyons faster than rivers. This view is looking out of a canyon mouth toward the west, where strong westerly winds have repeatedly attacked this landscape over the past four million years. (Credit: Noah J. Finnegan)
Winds could be responsible for the shape of some modern canyons on Earth and other planets such as Mars, according to a new study.
Researchers analysed a set of river gorges in the Chilean Andes where some of the canyons are exposed to strong winds, and others are shielded. They found that wind explained differences in the canyons’ shape: canyons exposed to wind are longer, wider and smoother than those influenced by water alone.
Researchers conclude that wind could also have reshaped canyons seen on Mars.
Original research paper published in Nature Geoscience on March 9, 2015.
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