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Eolian processes facts for kids

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KelsoSand
Sand blowing off a crest in the Kelso Dunes of the Mojave Desert, California
Grant 1929 crossbedding
Cross-bedding of sandstone near Mount Carmel road, Zion National Park. It shows the effect of wind action and sand dune formation before the formation of rock. These are fossilized sand dunes

Eolian (pronounced ee-OH-lee-an) describes anything related to the wind. It's all about how wind can change the surface of our Earth and even other planets. Think of it as the wind's superpower to shape the land!

Wind is a strong force of nature. It can cause erosion, which means it wears away rocks and soil. It also moves sand and other small pieces of material from one place to another.

How Wind Shapes the Land

Wind is especially powerful in dry places. Areas like deserts have very little plant life. This means there isn't much to hold the soil and sand in place. So, the wind can easily pick up and move these materials.

Even though water is usually a stronger force for changing the land, wind is the main sculptor in deserts. It creates amazing landforms like dunes.

Wind's Global Journeys

Wind can carry materials a very long way. For example, tiny dust particles from the Sahara Desert in Africa can travel across the ocean. This dust reaches places as far away as Europe and even the Amazon basin in South America! This shows how powerful global winds and air movements are. They connect different parts of our planet.

Related pages



Images for kids

  • Erosioenparamo

    Wind erosion of soil at the foot of Chimborazo, Ecuador

  • Ventifact 1871 USGS

    Rock carved by drifting sand below Fortification Rock in Arizona (Photo by Timothy H. O'Sullivan, USGS, 1871)

  • Yardangs in the Tsaidam Desert

    Yardangs in the Qaidam Desert, Qinghai Province, China

  • DustStormInSpearmanTexas19350414

    Dust storm approaching Spearman, Texas, 14 April 1935

  • Dust storm in Amarillo, Texas

    Dust storm in Amarillo, Texas. FSA photo by Arthur Rothstein (1936)

  • Sandstorm in Al Asad, Iraq

    A massive sand storm cloud is about to envelop a military camp as it rolls over Al Asad, Iraq, just before nightfall on 27 April 2005

  • Mesquite Sand Dunes

    Mesquite Flat Dunes in Death Valley looking toward the Cottonwood Mountains from the north west arm of Star Dune (2003)

  • Aeolian deposition near Addeha

    Aeolian deposition near Addeha, Kola Tembien, Ethiopia (2019)

  • Rub al Khali 002

    Sand dunes of the Empty Quarter to the east of Liwa Oasis, United Arab Emirates

  • Mesquite Sand Dunes

    Typical shape

  • Rub' al Khali (Arabian Empty Quarter) sand dunes imaged by Terra (EOS AM-1)

    Rub' al Khali (Arabian Empty Quarter) sand dunes imaged by Terra (EOS AM-1). Most of these dunes are seif dunes. Their origin from barchans is suggested by the stubby remnant "hooks" seen on many of the dunes. Wind would be from left to right.

  • Sahara satellite hires

    Satellite image of Sahara

  • Unsettled Weather Across Central Australia

    UWeather system moving across the Australian desert

  • Loess landscape china

    Loess Plateau near Hunyuan, Shanxi

  • Cross-bedding Of Sandstone Near Mt Carmel Road Zion Canyon Utah

    Cross-bedding of sandstone near Mt. Carmel road, Zion Canyon

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Erosión y sedimentación eólica para niños

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