Articles | Volume 9, issue 2
https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-145-2021
https://doi.org/10.5194/esurf-9-145-2021
Research article
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12 Mar 2021
Research article | Highlight paper |  | 12 Mar 2021

The enigma of relict large sorted stone stripes in the tropical Ethiopian Highlands

Alexander R. Groos, Janik Niederhauser, Luise Wraase, Falk Hänsel, Thomas Nauss, Naki Akçar, and Heinz Veit

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Cited articles

Aldiss, D. T. and Edwards, E. J.: The Geology of the Falkdland Islands, British Geological Survey Technical Report WC/99110, British Geological Survey, Keyworth, Nottingham, UK, available at: http://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/507542/1/WC99010.pdf (last access: February 2021), 1999. a
André, M.-F., Hall, K., Bertran, P., and Arocena, J.: Stone Runs in the Falkland Islands: Periglacial or Tropical?, Geomorphology, 95, 524–543, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2007.07.006, 2008. a, b, c, d, e, f
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Balme, M., Gallagher, C., Page, D., Murray, J., and Muller, J.-P.: Sorted Stone Circles in Elysium Planitia, Mars: Implications for Recent Martian Climate, Icarus, 200, 30–38, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.icarus.2008.11.010, 2009. a
Barrows, T., Stone, J. O., and Fifield, L. K.: Exposure Ages for Pleistocene Periglacial Deposits in Australia, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 23, 697–708, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2003.10.011, 2004. a
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Short summary
Large sorted stone stripes have been discovered on the 4000 m high central Sanetti Plateau of the tropical Bale Mountains in Ethiopia. The stripes are a mystery as similar landforms have so far only been reported in the temperate zone and polar regions. Our investigations suggest that the stripes formed in the vicinity of a former ice cap on the plateau during a much colder climatic period. The distinct pattern is the result of a process related to cyclic freezing and thawing of the ground.