Editing Geomorphology (section)

== History ==
[[File:Cono de Arita, Salar de Arizaro (Argentina).jpg|thumb|"Cono de Arita" at the dry lake [[Salar de Arizaro]] on the [[Atacama Plateau]], in northwestern [[Argentina]]. The cone itself is a volcanic edifice, representing complex interaction of intrusive igneous rocks with the surrounding salt.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.amusingplanet.com/2014/07/cono-de-arita-in-argentina.html|title=Cono de Arita in Argentina |website=amusingplanet.com |first=Kaushik |last=Patowary |date=16 July 2014}}</ref>]]
[[File:Velke Hincovo pleso.jpg|thumb|Lake "Veľké Hincovo pleso" in [[High Tatras]], [[Slovakia]]. The lake occupies an "[[overdeepening]]" carved by flowing ice that once occupied this glacial valley.]]
Other than some notable exceptions in antiquity, geomorphology is a relatively young science, growing along with interest in other aspects of the [[earth sciences]] in the mid-19th century. This section provides a very brief outline of some of the major figures and events in its development.

=== Ancient geomorphology ===
The study of landforms and the evolution of the Earth's surface can be dated back to scholars of [[Classical Greece]]. In the 5th century BC, [[Greek historiography|Greek historian]] [[Herodotus]] argued from observations of soils that the [[Nile delta]] was actively growing into the [[Mediterranean Sea]], and estimated its age.<ref name='Bierman'>Bierman, Paul R., and David R. Montgomery. ''Key Concepts in Geomorphology''. Macmillan Higher Education, 2014.</ref><ref name="Rafferty 2012 pp 8-9">Rafferty, John P. (2012). ''Geological Sciences; Geology: Landforms, Minerals, and Rocks''. New York: Britannica Educational Publishing, pp. 8–9. {{ISBN|9781615305445}}</ref> In the 4th century BC, [[List of Greek philosophers|Greek philosopher]] [[Aristotle]] [[Meteorology (Aristotle)|speculated]] that due to [[sediment transport]] into the sea, eventually those seas would fill while the land lowered. He claimed that this would mean that land and water would eventually swap places, whereupon the process would begin again in an endless cycle.<ref name='Bierman' /><ref name="Rafferty 2012 p. 9"/> The ''[[Encyclopedia of the Brethren of Purity]]'' published in [[Arabic language|Arabic]] at [[Basra]] during the 10th century also discussed the cyclical changing positions of land and sea with rocks breaking down and being washed into the sea, their sediment eventually rising to form new continents.<ref name="Rafferty 2012 p. 9"/> The medieval [[Persian people|Persian]] [[Muslim]] scholar [[Abū Rayhān al-Bīrūnī]] (973–1048), after observing rock formations at the mouths of rivers, hypothesized that the [[Indian Ocean]] once covered all of [[Indian subcontinent|India]].<ref>{{cite book|doi=10.1142/9789814503204_0018 |chapter=Islam and Science |title=Ideals and Realities — Selected Essays of Abdus Salam |pages=179–213 |year=1987 |last1=Salam |first1=Abdus |isbn=978-9971-5-0315-4}}</ref> In his ''[[De Natura Fossilium]]'' of 1546, German [[metallurgist]] and [[mineralogist]] [[Georgius Agricola]] (1494–1555) wrote about erosion and natural [[weathering]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Needham |first=Joseph |author-link=Joseph Needham |date=1959 |title=Science and Civilization in China: Volume 3, Mathematics and the Sciences of the Heavens and the Earth |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |page=604 |isbn=9780521058018}}</ref>

Another early theory of geomorphology was devised by [[Song dynasty]] [[History of China|Chinese]] scientist and statesman [[Shen Kuo]] (1031–1095). This was based on [[Dream Pool Essays|his observation]] of [[Ocean|marine]] [[fossil]] shells in a [[stratum|geological stratum]] of a mountain hundreds of miles from the [[Pacific Ocean]]. Noticing [[bivalvia|bivalve]] shells running in a horizontal span along the cut section of a cliffside, he theorized that the cliff was once the pre-historic location of a seashore that had shifted hundreds of miles over the centuries. He inferred that the land was reshaped and formed by [[soil erosion]] of the mountains and by deposition of [[silt]], after observing strange natural erosions of the [[Taihang Mountains]] and the [[Yandangshan|Yandang Mountain]] near [[Wenzhou]].<ref>Sivin, Nathan (1995). ''Science in Ancient China: Researches and Reflections''. Brookfield, Vermont: VARIORUM, Ashgate Publishing. III, p. 23</ref><ref name=nj>Needham, Joseph. (1959). ''Science and Civilization in China: Volume 3, Mathematics and the Sciences of the Heavens and the Earth''. [[Cambridge University Press]]. pp. 603–618.</ref><ref name="Rafferty 2012 p. 6-8">Rafferty, John P. (2012). ''Geological Sciences; Geology: Landforms, Minerals, and Rocks''. New York: Britannica Educational Publishing, pp. 6–8. {{ISBN|9781615305445}}</ref> Furthermore, he promoted the theory of gradual [[climate change (general concept)|climate change]] over centuries of time once ancient [[petrified]] [[bamboo]]s were found to be preserved underground in the dry, northern climate zone of ''Yanzhou'', which is now modern day [[Yan'an]], [[Shaanxi]] province.<ref name=nj/><ref>Chan, Alan Kam-leung and Gregory K. Clancey, Hui-Chieh Loy (2002). ''Historical Perspectives on East Asian Science, Technology and Medicine''. Singapore: [[Singapore University Press]]. p. 15. {{ISBN|9971-69-259-7}}.</ref><ref name="Rafferty 2012 p. 6">Rafferty, John P. (2012). ''Geological Sciences; Geology: Landforms, Minerals, and Rocks''. New York: Britannica Educational Publishing, p. 6. {{ISBN|9781615305445}}</ref> Previous [[Chinese literature|Chinese authors]] also presented ideas about changing landforms. [[Scholar-official]] [[Du Yu]] (222–285) of the [[Western Jin dynasty]] predicted that two monumental stelae recording his achievements, one buried at the foot of a mountain and the other erected at the top, would eventually change their relative positions over time as would hills and valleys.<ref name="Rafferty 2012 p. 9">Rafferty, John P. (2012). ''Geological Sciences; Geology: Landforms, Minerals, and Rocks''. New York: Britannica Educational Publishing, p. 9. {{ISBN|9781615305445}}</ref> [[Chinese alchemy|Daoist alchemist]] [[Ge Hong]] (284–364) created a fictional dialogue where the [[Magu (deity)|immortal Magu]] explained that the territory of the [[East China Sea]] was once a land filled with [[Morus (plant)|mulberry trees]].<ref>Schottenhammer, Angela. "The 'China Seas' in world history: A general outline of the role of Chinese and East Asian maritime space from its origins to c. 1800", ''Journal of Marine and Island Cultures'', (Volume 1, Issue 2, 2012): 63-86. ISSN 2212-6821, p. 72. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.imic.2012.11.002.</ref>

=== Early modern geomorphology ===
The term geomorphology seems to have been first used by [[Laumann]] in an 1858 work written in German. Keith Tinkler has suggested that the word came into general use in English, German and French after [[John Wesley Powell]] and [[W. J. McGee]] used it during the International Geological Conference of 1891.<ref>{{cite book |last=Tinkler |first=Keith J. |title=A short history of geomorphology |page=4 |date=1985 |isbn=978-0389205449 |publisher=[[Rowman & Littlefield Publishers]]}}</ref> [[John Edward Marr]] in his The Scientific Study of Scenery<ref>{{cite book|last=Marr |first=J.E. |title=The Scientific Study of Scenery |publisher=Methuen |page=v |date=1900 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fhVHAAAAIAAJ&pg=PR5}}</ref> considered his book as, 'an Introductory Treatise on Geomorphology, a subject which has sprung from the union of Geology and Geography'.

An early popular geomorphic model was the ''geographical cycle'' or ''[[cycle of erosion]]'' model of broad-scale landscape evolution developed by [[William Morris Davis]] between 1884 and 1899.<ref name='Bierman' /> It was an elaboration of the [[uniformitarianism (science)|uniformitarianism]] theory that had first been proposed by [[James Hutton]] (1726–1797).<ref name='OldroydGrapes'>Oldroyd, David R. & Grapes, Rodney H. Contributions to the history of geomorphology and Quaternary geology: an introduction. In: Grapes, R. H., Oldroyd, D. & GrigelisR, A. (eds) ''History of Geomorphology and Quaternary Geology''. Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 301, 1–17.</ref> With regard to [[valley]] forms, for example, uniformitarianism posited a sequence in which a river runs through a flat terrain, gradually carving an increasingly deep valley, until the [[side valley]]s eventually erode, flattening the terrain again, though at a lower elevation. It was thought that [[tectonic uplift]] could then start the cycle over. In the decades following Davis's development of this idea, many of those studying geomorphology sought to fit their findings into this framework, known today as "Davisian".<ref name='OldroydGrapes' /> Davis's ideas are of historical importance, but have been largely superseded today, mainly due to their lack of predictive power and qualitative nature.<ref name='OldroydGrapes' />

In the 1920s, [[Walther Penck]] developed an alternative model to Davis's.<ref name='OldroydGrapes' /> Penck thought that landform evolution was better described as an alternation between ongoing processes of uplift and denudation, as opposed to Davis's model of a single uplift followed by decay.<ref name='Ritter'>Ritter, Dale F., R. Craig Kochel, and Jerry R. Miller. ''Process geomorphology''. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 1995.</ref> He also emphasised that in many landscapes slope evolution occurs by backwearing of rocks, not by Davisian-style surface lowering, and his science tended to emphasise surface process over understanding in detail the surface history of a given locality. Penck was German, and during his lifetime his ideas were at times rejected vigorously by the English-speaking geomorphology community.<ref name=OldroydGrapes /> His early death, Davis' dislike for his work, and his at-times-confusing writing style likely all contributed to this rejection.<ref name='Simons'>Simons, Martin (1962), "The morphological analysis of landforms: A new review of the work of Walther Penck (1888–1923)", Transactions and Papers (Institute of British Geographers) 31: 1–14.</ref>

Both Davis and Penck were trying to place the study of the evolution of the Earth's surface on a more generalized, globally relevant footing than it had been previously. In the early 19th century, authors – especially in Europe – had tended to attribute the form of landscapes to local [[climate]], and in particular to the specific effects of [[glaciation]] and [[periglacial]] processes. In contrast, both Davis and Penck were seeking to emphasize the importance of evolution of landscapes through time and the generality of the Earth's surface processes across different landscapes under different conditions.

During the early 1900s, the study of regional-scale geomorphology was termed "physiography".<ref>{{cite book |editor1-first=Douglas |editor1-last=Richardson |editor2-first=Noel |editor2-last=Castree |editor3-first=Michael F. |editor3-last=Goodchild |editor4-first=Weidong |editor4-last=Liu |editor5-first=Richard A. |editor5-last=Marston |date=2017|chapter=Landforms & Physiography |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gfYoDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT1988 |title=International Encyclopedia of Geography, 15 Volume Set: People, the Earth, Environment & Technology |pages=3979–3980 |isbn=978-0470659632 |publisher=[[Wiley-Blackwell]] |access-date=2019-09-06}}</ref> Physiography later was considered to be a contraction of "''physi''cal" and "ge''ography''", and therefore synonymous with [[physical geography]], and the concept became embroiled in controversy surrounding the appropriate concerns of that discipline. Some geomorphologists held to a geological basis for physiography and emphasized a concept of [[physiographic regions of the world|physiographic regions]] while a conflicting trend among geographers was to equate physiography with "pure morphology", separated from its geological heritage.{{citation needed|date=June 2014}} In the period following World War II, the emergence of process, climatic, and quantitative studies led to a preference by many earth scientists for the term "geomorphology" in order to suggest an analytical approach to landscapes rather than a descriptive one.<ref>{{cite web |last=Baker |first=Victor R. |title=Geomorphology From Space: A Global Overview of Regional Landforms, Introduction |publisher=[[NASA]] |date=1986 |url=http://disc.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/geomorphology/GEO_1/GEO_CHAPTER_1.shtml |access-date=2007-12-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080315105147/http://disc.sci.gsfc.nasa.gov/geomorphology/GEO_1/GEO_CHAPTER_1.shtml |archive-date=2008-03-15 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== Climatic geomorphology ===
{{further|Climatic geomorphology}}
During the age of [[New Imperialism]] in the late 19th century European explorers and scientists traveled across the globe bringing descriptions of landscapes and landforms. As geographical knowledge increased over time these observations were systematized in a search for regional patterns. Climate emerged thus as prime factor for explaining landform distribution at a grand scale. The rise of climatic geomorphology was foreshadowed by the work of [[Wladimir Köppen]], [[Vasily Dokuchaev]] and [[Andreas Franz Wilhelm Schimper|Andreas Schimper]]. [[William Morris Davis]], the leading geomorphologist of his time, recognized the role of climate by complementing his "normal" temperate climate [[cycle of erosion]] with arid and glacial ones.<ref name=TwidaleLageat1994>{{cite journal |last1=Twidale |first1=C.R. |author-link=Charles Rowland Twidale |last2=Lageat |first2=Y. |date=1994 |title=Climatic geomorphology: a critique |journal=[[Progress in Physical Geography]] |volume=18 |issue=3 |pages=319–334 |doi= 10.1177/030913339401800302 |bibcode=1994PrPG...18..319T |s2cid=129518705}}</ref><ref name=Goudie2004>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Goudie |first=A.S. |editor-last=Goudie |editor-first=A.S. |author-link=Andrew Goudie (geographer) |editor-link=Andrew Goudie (geographer) |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Geomorphology |title=Climatic geomorphology |year=2004 |pages=162–164}}</ref> Nevertheless, interest in climatic geomorphology was also a reaction ''against'' [[Cycle of erosion|Davisian geomorphology]] that was by the mid-20th century considered both un-innovative and dubious.<ref name=Goudie2004/><ref name=Attack>{{cite journal |last=Flemal |first=Ronald C. |date=1971 |title=The Attack on the Davisian System Of Geomorphology: A Synopsis |journal=[[Journal of Geological Education]] |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=3–13 |doi=10.5408/0022-1368-XIX.1.3 |bibcode=1971JGeoE..19....3F}}</ref> Early climatic geomorphology developed primarily in [[continental Europe]] while in the English-speaking world the tendency was not explicit until L.C. Peltier's 1950 publication on a [[periglaciation|periglacial]] cycle of erosion.<ref name=TwidaleLageat1994/>

Climatic geomorphology was criticized in a 1969 [[review article]] by process geomorphologist [[David Stoddart (geographer)|D.R. Stoddart]].<ref name=Goudie2004/><ref name=Thomas2004>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Thomas |first=Michael F. |editor-last=Goudie |editor-first=A.S. |editor-link=Andrew Goudie (geographer) |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Geomorphology |title=Tropical geomorphology |year=2004 |pages=1063–1069}}</ref> The criticism by Stoddart proved "devastating" sparking a decline in the popularity of climatic geomorphology in the late 20th century.<ref name=Goudie2004/><ref name=Thomas2004/> Stoddart criticized climatic geomorphology for applying supposedly "trivial" methodologies in establishing landform differences between morphoclimatic zones, being linked to [[Cycle of erosion|Davisian geomorphology]] and by allegedly neglecting the fact that physical laws governing processes are the same across the globe.<ref name=Thomas2004/> In addition some conceptions of climatic geomorphology, like that which holds that chemical weathering is more rapid in tropical climates than in cold climates proved to not be straightforwardly true.<ref name=Goudie2004/>

=== Quantitative and process geomorphology ===
[[File:South Africa-Mpumalanga-Gods Window002.jpg|thumb|Part of the [[Great Escarpment, Southern Africa|Great Escarpment]] in the [[Drakensberg]], southern Africa. This landscape, with its high altitude [[plateau]] being incised into by the steep slopes of the escarpment, was cited by Davis as a classic example of his [[cycle of erosion]].<ref>Burke, Kevin, and Yanni Gunnell. "The African erosion surface: a continental-scale synthesis of geomorphology, tectonics, and environmental change over the past 180 million years." Geological Society of America Memoirs 201 (2008): 1–66.</ref>]]
Geomorphology was started to be put on a solid quantitative footing in the middle of the 20th century. Following the early work of [[Grove Karl Gilbert]] around the turn of the 20th century,<ref name='Bierman' /><ref name='OldroydGrapes' /><ref name= 'Ritter' /> a group of mainly American natural scientists, [[geologists]] and [[hydraulic engineers]] including [[William Walden Rubey]], [[Ralph Alger Bagnold]], [[Hans Albert Einstein]], [[Frank Ahnert]], [[John Tilton Hack|John Hack]], [[Luna Leopold]], [[Shields parameter|A. Shields]], [[Thomas Maddock (scientist)|Thomas Maddock]], [[Arthur Strahler]], [[Stanley Schumm]], and [[Ronald Shreve]] began to research the form of landscape elements such as [[river]]s and [[mass wasting|hillslopes]] by taking systematic, direct, quantitative measurements of aspects of them and investigating the [[Scaling law|scaling]] of these measurements.<ref name='Bierman' /><ref name='OldroydGrapes' /><ref name='Ritter' /><ref>{{cite web|title=Memorial to Stanley A. Schumm (1927–2011) |publisher=[[The Geological Society of America]] |url=https://www.geosociety.org/documents/gsa/memorials/v41/Schumm-S.pdf |first1=Frank G. |last1=Ethridge |first2=Ellen |last2=Wohl |first3=Allen |last3=Gellis |first4=Dru |last4=Germanoski |first5=Ben R. |last5=Hayes |first6=Shunji |last6=Ouchi |work=Memorials |volume=41 |date=December 2012}}</ref> These methods began to allow prediction of the past and future behavior of landscapes from present observations, and were later to develop into the modern trend of a highly quantitative approach to geomorphic problems. Many groundbreaking and widely cited early geomorphology studies appeared in the [[Bulletin of the Geological Society of America]],<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Morisawa |first=Marie |date=1988-07-01 |title=The Geological Society of America Bulletin and the development of quantitative geomorphology |journal=[[GSA Bulletin]] |language=en |volume=100 |issue=7 |pages=1016–1022 |doi=10.1130/0016-7606(1988)100<1016:TGSOAB>2.3.CO;2 |issn=0016-7606 |bibcode=1988GSAB..100.1016M}}</ref> and received only few citations prior to 2000 (they are examples of [[Paper with delayed recognition|"sleeping beauties"]])<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Goldstein|first=Evan B|date=2017-04-17|title=Delayed recognition of geomorphology papers in the Geological Society of America Bulletin|journal=Progress in Physical Geography|language=en|volume=41|issue=3|pages=363–368|doi=10.1177/0309133317703093|bibcode=2017PrPG...41..363G |s2cid=132521098|url=http://eartharxiv.org/bnshx/|access-date=2019-01-19|archive-date=2020-08-07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807152046/https://eartharxiv.org/bnshx/|url-status=dead}}</ref> when a marked increase in quantitative geomorphology research occurred.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Church |first=Michael |date=2010-06-01 |title=The trajectory of geomorphology |journal=[[Progress in Physical Geography]] |language=en |volume=34 |issue=3 |pages=265–286 |doi=10.1177/0309133310363992 |bibcode=2010PrPG...34..265C |s2cid=140160085 |issn=0309-1333}}</ref>

Quantitative geomorphology can involve [[fluid dynamics]] and [[solid mechanics]], [[geomorphometry]], laboratory studies, field measurements, theoretical work, and full [[landscape evolution model]]ing. These approaches are used to understand [[weathering]] and [[pedogenesis|the formation of soils]], [[sediment transport]], landscape change, and the interactions between climate, tectonics, erosion, and deposition.<ref name = orogens>{{Cite journal |last=Whipple |first=Kelin X. |date=2004-04-21 |title=Bedrock rivers and the geomorphology of active orogens |journal=[[Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences]] |volume=32 |issue=1 |pages=151–185 |doi=10.1146/annurev.earth.32.101802.120356 |issn=0084-6597 |url=http://revistas.ucm.es/index.php/AGUC/article/view/60473 |bibcode=2004AREPS..32..151W}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Merritts |first1=Dorothy J. |last2=Tucker |first2=Gregory E. |last3=Whipple |first3=Kelin X. |last4=Snyder |first4=Noah P. |s2cid=5844478 |date=2000-08-01 |title=Landscape response to tectonic forcing: Digital elevation model analysis of stream profiles in the Mendocino triple junction region, northern California |journal=[[GSA Bulletin]] |language=en |volume=112 |issue=8 |pages=1250–1263 |doi= 10.1130/0016-7606(2000)112<1250:LRTTFD>2.0.CO;2 |issn=0016-7606 |bibcode=2000GSAB..112.1250S}}</ref>

In Sweden [[Filip Hjulström]]'s doctoral thesis, "The River Fyris" (1935), contained one of the first quantitative studies of geomorphological processes ever published. His students followed in the same vein, making quantitative studies of mass transport ([[Anders Rapp]]), fluvial transport ([[Åke Sundborg]]), delta deposition ([[Valter Axelsson]]), and coastal processes ([[John O. Norrman]]). This developed into "the [[Uppsala University|Uppsala]] School of [[Physical Geography]]".<ref>Gregory, KJ, 1985: "The Nature of Physical Geography", E. Arnold</ref>

=== Contemporary geomorphology ===
Today, the field of geomorphology encompasses a very wide range of different approaches and interests.<ref name='Bierman' /> Modern researchers aim to draw out quantitative "laws" that govern Earth surface processes, but equally, recognize the uniqueness of each landscape and environment in which these processes operate. Particularly important realizations in contemporary geomorphology include:

:1) that not all landscapes can be considered as either "stable" or "perturbed", where this perturbed state is a temporary displacement away from some ideal target form. Instead, dynamic changes of the landscape are now seen as an essential part of their nature.<ref name="orogens" /><ref name="Time scales">{{cite journal |last=Allen |first=Philip A. |author-link=Philip A. Allen |title=Time scales of tectonic landscapes and their sediment routing systems |journal=Geological Society, London, Special Publications |date=2008 |volume=296 |issue=1 |pages=7–28 |doi=10.1144/SP296.2 |bibcode = 2008GSLSP.296....7A |s2cid=128396744}}</ref>

:2) that many geomorphic systems are best understood in terms of the [[stochastic process|stochasticity]] of the processes occurring in them, that is, the probability distributions of event magnitudes and return times.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Benda |first1=Lee |last2=Dunne |first2=Thomas |title=Stochastic forcing of sediment supply to channel networks from landsliding and debris flow |journal=[[Water Resources Research]] |date=December 1997 |volume=33 |issue=12 |pages=2849–2863 |doi=10.1029/97WR02388 |bibcode=1997WRR....33.2849B |author2-link=Thomas Dunne (geologist) |doi-access=free}}</ref><ref>Knighton, David. Fluvial forms and processes: a new perspective. Routledge, 2014.</ref> This in turn has indicated the importance of [[chaos theory|chaotic determinism]] to landscapes, and that landscape properties are best considered [[statistics|statistically]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Dietrich |first1=W. E. |last2=Bellugi |first2=D.G. |last3=Sklar |first3=L.S. |last4=Stock |first4=J.D. |last5=Heimsath |first5=A.M. |last6=Roering |first6=J.J. |title=Prediction in Geomorphology |date=2003 |volume=135 |pages=103–132 |doi=10.1029/135GM09 |chapter-url=http://calm.geo.berkeley.edu/geomorph/gtl.pdf |location=Washington, DC |bibcode=2003GMS...135..103D |series=Geophysical Monograph Series |isbn=978-1118668559 |chapter=Geomorphic Transport Laws for Predicting Landscape form and Dynamics}}</ref> The same processes in the same landscapes do not always lead to the same end results.

According to [[Karna Lidmar-Bergström]], [[regional geography]] is since the 1990s no longer accepted by mainstream scholarship as a basis for geomorphological studies.<ref name=Karna2020>{{cite journal |last=Lidmar-Bergström |first=Karna |author-link=Karna Lidmar-Bergström |date=2020 |title=The major landforms of the bedrock of Sweden–with a view on the relationships between physical geography and geology |journal=[[Geografiska Annaler]] |publisher=[[Swedish Society for Anthropology and Geography]] |volume=102 |issue=1 |pages=1–11 |doi=10.1080/04353676.2019.1702809 |bibcode=2020GeAnA.102....1L |doi-access=free}}</ref>

Albeit having its importance diminished, [[climatic geomorphology]] continues to exist as field of study producing relevant research. More recently concerns over [[global warming]] have led to a renewed interest in the field.<ref name=Goudie2004/> 

Despite considerable criticism, the [[cycle of erosion]] model has remained part of the science of geomorphology.<ref name=Slaymaker/> The model or theory has never been proved wrong,<ref name=Slaymaker/> but neither has it been proven.<ref name=ARoy>{{cite book |last=Roy |first=Andre |title=Contemporary Meanings in Physical Geography: From What to Why? |page=5}}</ref> The inherent difficulties of the model have instead made geomorphological research to advance along other lines.<ref name=Slaymaker>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Slaymaker |first=Olav |editor-last=Goudie |editor-first=A.S. |editor-link=Andrew Goudie (geographer) |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Geomorphology |title=Geomorphic evolution |year=2004 |pages=420–422}}</ref> In contrast to its disputed status in geomorphology, the cycle of erosion model is a common approach used to establish [[denudation chronology|denudation chronologies]], and is thus an important concept in the science of [[historical geology]].<ref name=Jones>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Jones |first=David K.C. |editor-last=Goudie |editor-first=A.S. |editor-link=Andrew Goudie (geographer) |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Geomorphology |title=Denudation chronology |year=2004 |pages=244–248}}</ref> While acknowledging its shortcomings, modern geomorphologists [[Andrew Goudie (geographer)|Andrew Goudie]] and [[Karna Lidmar-Bergström]] have praised it for its elegance and pedagogical value respectively.<ref name=Naten>{{cite web |url=http://www.ne.se/uppslagsverk/encyklopedi/l%C3%A5ng/erosionscykel |title=erosionscykel |trans-title=Erosion cycle |last=Lidmar-Bergström |first=Karna |author-link=Karna Lidmar-Bergström |website=[[Nationalencyklopedin]] |publisher=Cydonia Development |access-date=June 22, 2016 |language=sv}}</ref><ref name=Goudie>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Goudie |first=A.S. |author-link=Andrew Goudie (geographer) |editor-last=Goudie |editor-first=A.S. |editor-link=Andrew Goudie (geographer) |encyclopedia=Encyclopedia of Geomorphology |title=Cycle of erosion |year=2004 |pages=223–224}}</ref>