Abstract
An analysis of elevation data from several great escarpment regions across the globe revealed a prevalence of inverse power law forms among the escarpment profiles. The best fit power law exponent varies among profiles and has a global median value of 0.9 and standard deviation of 1.8. The power law form is consistent with the shape of a detachment‐limited escarpment that is retreating headward while maintaining a constant shape. Such a constant‐shape evolution requires the local denudation rate to be equal to the product of escarpment retreat rate and local slope. The available basin‐averaged denudation rate data from several great escarpment regions are consistent with this constraint, and this allows estimation of the recent retreat rates of the escarpments within the constant‐shape assumption.
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