Development of a New Type of Geodiversity System for the Scoria Cones of the Chaîne des Puys Based on Geomorphometric Studies
Résumé
The aesthetic beauty of a landscape is an integral value reflected in artistic inspiration.
Science, in contrast, tries to quantify the landscape using various methods. Of these, geodiversity
indices have been found to be a useful approach, and this geomorphological diversity is characterized
through derivatives made from digital terrain models (DTM). While these methods are useful, they
have a drawback that the value of some landscape features may be underestimated if they have
regular forms. For example, the aesthetic and scientific attractiveness of our study area, the Chaîne
des Puys (Auvergne, France), a UNESCOWorld Heritage site, is strongly related to the distinctive
small volcanoes, but despite being an outstanding element of the landscape, the scoria cones do
not stand out well in geodiversity indices. This is because they have almost symmetrical conical
forms and regular slopes that score low in the available geodiversity methods. We explore this
problem and investigate how to overcome the low geodiversity performance of these distinctive
landscape elements. We propose a modified approach for scoria cones using the normal input
layers but adapted to the cone geometry. The modified indices are easy to compute and consider
the uniformity and symmetry of larger landscape elements that form scientifically integral and
aesthetically vital components of the landscape. The method is applicable to the tens of thousands
of small monogenetic volcanoes in the hundreds of volcanic fields around the world, and could
be extended to other volcanic features, such as domes. It would be possible to use the method to
study larger volcanoes, as they often share and replicate the small-scale monogenetic morphology
considered here.
Domaines
Volcanologie
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