Aras Nehri Vadisi ve Yakın Çevresinin Jeomorfolojisi (Kağızman-Gaziler Arası)

Abstract

The purpose of this study, which covers the Aras River valley and its immediate surroundings, which drained the Kagizman Depression in the Eastern Anatolia, Erzurum-Kars Section is to deal with the valley development process of the river that settled in the region by incising the Kars Plateau, its geomorphological features, its response to tectonic movements in the area and the factors affecting the morphological structure of the region. The selected research area is both in an important point in terms of the relation of the tectonic-fluvial system and covers the Aras River valley, one of Turkey's large rivers, so it is remarkable. In the study, the geomorphological units in the Aras River valley, mainly the river terraces and the river channel were mapped, the areal and metric distributions of the terraces were made, and various maps and sections of the area were created. In the field studies carried out, 3 terrace levels located at 10-25 m, 55-60 m and 110-120 m altitude from the current riverbed were determined. The internal structures of these terraces, which are important paleogeographic findings, are generally composed of coarse sediment and are mostly similar to each other. Besides, Aras River, which presents a typical braided river pattern in the study area, exhibits forced meandering due to the accumulation alluvial fans developing along the main valley.