The large-scale geomorphology of the Huang He (Yellow River) headwaters, centered around the Bayan Har Shan (5267 m asl) in the northeastern part of the Tibetan Plateau, is dominated by an uplifted remnant of a low-refief relict plateau with several mountain ranges. We have performed geomorphological mapping using SRTM topographic data and Landsat 7 ETM+ satellite imagery to evaluate landscape characteristics and patterns, and to investigate the relative importance of different erosional processes in the dissection of this plateau remnant. The distribution of valley morphologies indicates that the eastern and southern margins of the plateau remnant have been extensively dissected by the Huang He and Chang Jiang (Yangtze) rivers and associated tributaries, while the mountain ranges have valley morphologies with U-shaped cross-sections that indicate large impacts from glacial erosion during Quaternary glaciations. The large-scale geomorphology of the Huang He (Yellow River) headwaters, centered around the Bayan Har Shan (5267 m asl) in the northeastern part of the Tibetan Plateau, is dominated by an uplifted remnant of a low-refief relict plateau with several mountain ranges. We have performed geomorphological mapping using SRTM topographic data and Landsat 7 ETM+ satellite imagery to evaluate landscape characteristics and patterns, and to investigate the relative importance of different erosional processes in the dissection of this plateau remnant. The distribution of valley morphologies indicates that the eastern and southern margins of the plateau remnant have been extensively dissected by the Huang He and Chang Jiang (Yangtze) rivers and associated tributaries, while the mountain ranges have valley morphologies with U-shaped cross-sections that indicate large impacts from glacial erosion during Quaternary glaciations.
Stroeven, A. P.,Hattestrand, C.,Heyman, J.,et al. Landscape analysis of the Huang He headwaters, NE Tibetan Plateau -Patterns of glacial and fluvial erosion[J]. GEOMORPHOLOGY,2009,103(2):212-226.
