Award Date

8-2002

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Geoscience

Advisor 1

Brenda J. Buck, Chair

First Committee Member

Frederick Bachhuber

Second Committee Member

Richard Orndorff

Graduate Faculty Representative

Kathryn Stave

Number of Pages

174

Abstract

Five geomorphic surfaces present in the northern Pahranagat Valley, Lincoln County, Nevada range in age from Early Pleistocene to Recent (Q1-Q5) and vary in clast lithology from dolomite to volcanic tephras. Two chronosequences and 5 lithosequences were compared to evaluate micro and macromorphic characteristics and development of soil pendants. This study presents a new interpretation for soil pendant development. Key features observed in the Pahranagat Valley pendants provide evidence for precipitation at the clast-pendant contact suggesting that newer deposits are not always found at the pendant terminus as other studies have assumed. These features include a void at the clast-pendant contact where precipitates such as calcium carbonate, silica and/or fibrous silicate clays may precipitate. Other features present in these pendants include significant amounts of parent clast grains that are incorporated into the pendant, detrital grain and parent material displacement and/or dissolution and presence of the fibrous clay sepiolite.

Keywords

Alluvial fans; Calcareous soils; Nevada – Pahranagat Valley; Soils — Composition

Disciplines

Desert Ecology | Geology | Geomorphology | Soil Science

File Format

pdf

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

Comments

Signatures have been redacted for privacy and security measures.

Rights

IN COPYRIGHT. For more information about this rights statement, please visit http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

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