Jonas Satkūnas, Vytautas Minkevičius, Rimantė Guobytė, Aldona Baubinienė, Rita Linkevičienė, Julius Taminskas
Morphometric indicators of insular and marginal morainic
uplands (based on LiDAR data) of the Last and pre-Last Glaciations, case of
Lithuania
Santrauka Abstract. The LiDAR-based digital elevation
models of representative sample areas of morainic uplands of the Last
(Weichselian) and pre-Last (Saalian) Glaciations in Lithuania were selected,
and the terrain ruggedness index (TRI) and slope angles (SAs) were calculated.
Former hypsometric studies of the topography in Lithuania were mainly dealing
with the indication of maximum, minimum or average altitudes of relief derived
from topographical maps. The SAs and TRI were calculated for the pattern areas
(16 × 16 km) and their central smaller parts (5 × 5 km). In order to test
how much morphometric parameters are dependent on the size of a sample area,
smaller areas (located in the central parts of all five patterns) were analysed
in a similar way, calculating SA and TRI values. The same order of the mean
values of SAs was determined: the steepest slopes are characteristic of the
Tauragnai, Plateliai and Vištytis patterns, and the gentlest slopes of the
Varniai and Medininkai patterns. The steepest slopes and the highest TRI were
determined for the marginal morainic uplands of the Last (Late Weichselian)
Glaciation. The age of the insular Žemaičiai (Samogitian) Upland is under
discussions so far. It was proposed by other researchers earlier that the core
of the insular Žemaičiai Upland height formed during the Saalian Glaciation and
this core is covered by a thin cover of Weichselian deposits. The morphometric
parameters display that the highest maturity of the relief is characteristic of
the southern slope of the insular Žemaičiai Upland and the Medininkai Upland of
the Saalian age. This indicates a likely similar age of both uplands. Doi https://doi.org/10.5200/baltica.2020.2.4 Raktažodžiai digital elevation models; terrain ruggedness index; slope angles; maturity of relief; Weichselian; Saalian
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