Characteristics of Glacial Valleys in Iran Case study: Sarmasaqlou Valley

Jafari, Gholam Hassan

doi:10.22111/gdij.2025.50566.3704

Characteristics of Glacial Valleys in Iran Case study: Sarmasaqlou Valley

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Gholam hassan Jafari

Associate Professor of Geography, Zanjan University, Zanjan, Iran

10.22111/gdij.2025.50566.3704

Abstract

Glacier-impacted mountain landscapes greatly contribute to the reconstruction of the glacial paleoenvironment. In this paper, a numerical model of glacial erosion is used to explore the maximum extension of glacial valleys. The focus of this paper is on the evolution of the valley transverse profile based on the ice mass balance with the valley transverse dimensions, which has evolved on time scales of thousands to hundreds of thousands of years. In the northern part of the Zanjanrud basin, the Sarmasaqlou River flows westward and joins the Ghezel-Ozan through the Zanjanrud. The glacial landforms of the Sarmasaqlou basin were digitized using GPS-based field observations, DEM data extracted from SRTM, and Google Earth. After that, the valley profiles formed by the spatial distribution of ice mass, proportional to the altitude, were analyzed in relation to the valley depth, cross-sectional width, cross-sectional area and valley volume. Based on documentary findings, the current and quaternary climate conditions were analyzed. Based on the resulting estimates, the increase in the height of the Sarmasaqlu valley wall was a function of the distance from the ELA; in such a way that it reached its maximum at an altitude of 1800-1900 meters. In this place, during the cold periods of the Quaternary, resistant limestone shale and tuff rocks were an obstacle to the flow of the glacier and caused excessive accumulation of ice. Certainly, the great differences in the valleys are due to the nature of the natural glaciers and the lithology of the ice bed.

Keywords

Main Subjects

Geomorphology and development

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