Morphology and genesis of asymmetric adhesion warts—a new adhesion surface structure

Abstract

Adhesion surface structures have been studied during their formation on a fluvial bar in East Greenland. Two main types occurred: adhesion ripples and asymmetric adhesion warts. Adhesion ripples formed on moist surfaces; their crests lay transverse to the wind direction and they migrated by trapping dry wind-blown sand on their steep fronts. Asymmetric adhesion warts (new structure) formed because of falling moisture content by preferred upwind migration of small protuberances on the adhesion ripples. The protuberances were apparently inherited from an initial rain sculpturing of the bar surface. The asymmetric adhesion warts, here described for the first time, were elongate parallel to the wind, associated with steep upwind-facing fronts and commonly displayed sand-shadow tails tapering in a downwind direction. A study of Devonian flood-basin deposits (Hornelen Basin, Norway) revealed the existence of adhesion surface structures very similar to their modern analogues. The Devonian examples were associated with rain-sculptured surfaces which are believed to have controlled the morphology of the adhesion surface structures as in the modern example. The orientation of the ancient adhesion surface structures is here used for determination of the palaeowind, which blew from the ENE.