escarpment

An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that marks a boundary between relatively level areas of contrasting elevation. It typically forms a prominent down-to-upward transition in the landscape and can be found on land surfaces worldwide. The term is often used interchangeably with scarp, though escarpment usually refers to a more extensive or persistent feature.

Escarpments arise through several geological processes. Differential erosion occurs when resistant rock overlies softer, more erodible layers, causing the softer material to wear away and expose a steep face at the contact. Tectonic activity can tilt, fault, or uplift blocks of crust, producing fault or structural escarpments. Rivers cutting into uplifted terrain create river escarpments, while coastal escarpments develop where sea-level changes or wave erosion expose cliffs along the shoreline. Glacial processes can also contribute by carving out or steepening edges of formerly level surfaces.

Types of escarpments include fault escarpments, dip-slip and related tectonic features, river and coastal escarpments, and large-scale planetary-scale escarpments such as continental or mountain-front escarpments. Notable examples include the Great Escarpment of Africa, which marks the uplifted edge of the southern African plateau; the Niagara Escarpment in North America, a fossil cliff that influences regional drainage and topography; and the Allegheny Front, an eastern North American escarpment separating the Appalachian Highlands from the surrounding plateau.

Ecologically and culturally, escarpments influence drainage patterns, soil development, climate exposure, and biodiversity by creating distinct habitats and watershed boundaries. They also pose geological hazards such as landslides and rockfalls in areas of active erosion or seismic activity.