Overview
Taking a global perspective, this book provides a concise overview of drylands, including their physical, biological, temporal, and human components.
- Examines the physical systems occurring in desert environments, including climate, hydrology, past and present lakes, weathering, hillslopes, geomorphic surfaces, water as a geomorphic agent, and aeolian processes
- Offers an accessible introduction to the physical, biological, temporal, and human components of drylands
- Investigates the nature, environmental requirements, and essential geomorphic roles of plants and animals in this stressful biological environment
- Highlights the impact of human population growth on climate, desertification, water resources, and dust storm activity
- Includes an examination of surface/atmosphere interactions and the impact of ENSO events.
Synopsis
Deserts and Desert Environments focuses on geomorphic systems, providing a comprehensive introduction to the physical, biological, temporal, and human components of drylands. Taking a global perspective, the book:
- examines physical systems, including climate, hydrology, past and present lakes, weathering, hillslopes, geomorphic surfaces, water as a geomorphic agent, and aeolian processes
- investigates the nature, environmental requirements, and essential geomorphic roles of plants and animals in this stressful biological environment
- considers the impact of human population growth on climate, desertification, water resources, and dust-storm activity
- covers surface/atmosphere interactions and the impact of El Niño Southern Oscillation events, exploring recent advances in understanding the temporal and spatial variability of deserts.
The breadth of coverage and accessible style make Deserts and Desert Environments ideal for introductory students of desert systems or desert geomorphology, as well as a useful reference for scientists and environmental professionals.
Editorials
From the Publisher
"All chapters of the book are preceded by a short introduction, which is very useful. The book is richly illustrated in the form of both black-and-white and colour photos (but the colour figures duplicate the black-and-white ones!), graphs and diagrams . . . taken all together, the book can be recommended to graduate students and researchers dealing with deserts; sedimentology is certainly not the main topic, but much information is very useful to increase the insight into the conditions that control the sedimentological processes in this environment." (Society for Sedimentary Research, 2011)
"I would recommend Deserts and Desert Environments as a useful starting point for any undergraduate student wishing to explore a range of dryland environments and landforms for the first time. The well-illustrated and accessible nature of this text-book will suit them well". (The Geographical Journal, 1 March 2010)
"Each chapter of the book is preceded by a short introduction, which is very useful. The book is richly illustrated in the form of both black-and-white and colour photos (but the colour photos duplicate the black-and-white ones!), graphs and diagrams." (Geologos, July 2010)