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Gettlinge
Gettlinge is a village in the southwest portion of the island of Öland, Sweden. It is known for its impressive Viking stone ship burial ground. Gettlinge is situated on the western fringe of the Stora Alvaret, a World Heritage Site designated by UNESCO. The site is readily visible from the perimeter highway, Route 136. Gettlinge, as most prehistoric burial sites on Öland, is established on the low-lying ridge, described by Hogan as a geological formation of thickened soil in this alvar region of otherwise extremely thin soil mantle. This ridge was one of the few places on the southern part of the island that had sufficient soil depth for creation of burial mounds. Situated at the fringe of the Stora Alvaret, the Gettlinge site and environs contains a number of rare and endangered species of both plants and animals, but most of these species are seasonally blooming wildflowers that flower in the late spring and summer. Beneath the soil layer where burials are placed i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Öland
Öland (, ; ; sometimes written ''Øland'' in other Scandinavian languages, and often ''Oland'' internationally; la, Oelandia) is the second-largest Swedish island and the smallest of the traditional provinces of Sweden. Öland has an area of and is located in the Baltic Sea just off the coast of Småland. The island has 26,000 inhabitants. It is separated from the mainland by the Kalmar Strait and connected to it by the Öland Bridge, which opened on 30 September 1972. The county seat Kalmar is on the mainland at the other end of the bridge and is an important commercial centre related to the Öland economy. The island's two municipalities are Borgholm and Mörbylånga named after their municipal seats. Much of the island is farmland, with fertile plains aided by the mild and sunny weather during summer. Öland does not have separate political representation at the national level, and is fully integrated into Sweden as part of Kalmar County. Administration Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stora Alvaret
Stora Alvaret (; "the Great Alvar") is an alvar, a barren limestone terrace, in the southern half of the island of Öland, Sweden. Stora Alvaret is a dagger shaped expanse almost long and about at the widest north end. The area of this formation exceeds , making it the largest such expanse in Europe and comprising over one fourth of the land area of the island. Because of the thin soil mantle and high pH levels, a great assortment of vegetation is found including numerous rare species. Stora Alvaret is not devoid of trees, contrary to a common misconception; in fact, it holds a variety of sparse stunted trees akin to a pygmy forest. Stora Alvaret falls within UNESCO's Agricultural Landscape of Southern Öland, , which was designated World Heritage Site due to its extraordinary prehistory. Geological origins The limestone plain was created by glacial action from earlier ice age advances. The limestone formation itself was created about 500 million years ago in more southerl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Route 136 (Öland, Sweden)
Swedish county road 136 ( sv, Länsväg 136) is a county road on the island of Öland, Sweden. This facility is a paved two lane structure that runs along the west coast of the island from Ottenby in the south to Nabbelund in the north. This highway constitutes the majority of named highway coverage on the island. Route 136 connects to Route 137 somewhat east of the Öland bridge, which crosses the Kalmar Strait. Much of the island of Öland has been designated a world heritage site by UNESCO in the form of the Stora Alvaret nature reserve. This reserve is home to a vast number of rare and endangered species due to the presence of an enormous limestone barren, which is the largest such formation in Europe. Route 136 is virtually the only spinal link allowing vehicle access to all parts of the Stora Alvaret. Sites accessed by Route 136 are the Gettlinge stone ship gravefield, Ottenby Nature Reserve and Halltorps Manor. Geology Much of Route 136 is built directly over t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stone Ship
The stone ship or ship setting was an early burial custom in Scandinavia, Northern Germany, and the Baltic states. The grave or cremation burial was surrounded by slabs or stones in the shape of a boat or ship. The ships vary in size and were erected from c. 1000BCE to 1000CE. History Stone ships were an early burial custom, characteristically Scandinavian but also found in Northern Germany and the Baltic states. The grave or cremation burial was surrounded by tightly or loosely fit slabs or stones in the outline of a ship. They are often found in grave fields, but are sometimes far from any other archaeological remains. Ship settings are of varying sizes, some of monumental proportions. The largest known is the mostly destroyed Jelling stone ship in Denmark, which was at least long. In Sweden, the size varies from ( Ale's Stones) to only a few metres. The orientation also varies. Inside, they can be cobbled or filled with stones, or have raised stones in the positions of ma ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bedrock
In geology, bedrock is solid rock that lies under loose material ( regolith) within the crust of Earth or another terrestrial planet. Definition Bedrock is the solid rock that underlies looser surface material. An exposed portion of bedrock is often called an outcrop. The various kinds of broken and weathered rock material, such as soil and subsoil, that may overlie the bedrock are known as regolith. Engineering geology The surface of the bedrock beneath the soil cover (regolith) is also known as ''rockhead'' in engineering geology, and its identification by digging, drilling or geophysical methods is an important task in most civil engineering projects. Superficial deposits can be very thick, such that the bedrock lies hundreds of meters below the surface. Weathering of bedrock Exposed bedrock experiences weathering, which may be physical or chemical, and which alters the structure of the rock to leave it susceptible to erosion. Bedrock may also experience sub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ordovician
The Ordovician ( ) is a geologic period and system, the second of six periods of the Paleozoic Era. The Ordovician spans 41.6 million years from the end of the Cambrian Period million years ago (Mya) to the start of the Silurian Period Mya. The Ordovician, named after the Welsh tribe of the Ordovices, was defined by Charles Lapworth in 1879 to resolve a dispute between followers of Adam Sedgwick and Roderick Murchison, who were placing the same rock beds in North Wales in the Cambrian and Silurian systems, respectively. Lapworth recognized that the fossil fauna in the disputed strata were different from those of either the Cambrian or the Silurian systems, and placed them in a system of their own. The Ordovician received international approval in 1960 (forty years after Lapworth's death), when it was adopted as an official period of the Paleozoic Era by the International Geological Congress. Life continued to flourish during the Ordovician as it did in the earlier Cambrian P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Holocene
The Holocene ( ) is the current geological epoch. It began approximately 11,650 cal years Before Present (), after the Last Glacial Period, which concluded with the Holocene glacial retreat. The Holocene and the preceding Pleistocene together form the Quaternary period. The Holocene has been identified with the current warm period, known as MIS 1. It is considered by some to be an interglacial period within the Pleistocene Epoch, called the Flandrian interglacial.Oxford University Press – Why Geography Matters: More Than Ever (book) – "Holocene Humanity" section https://books.google.com/books?id=7P0_sWIcBNsC The Holocene corresponds with the rapid proliferation, growth and impacts of the human species worldwide, including all of its written history, technological revolutions, development of major civilizations, and overall significant transition towards urban living in the present. The human impact on modern-era Earth and its ecosystems may be considered of gl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Topsoil
Topsoil is the upper layer of soil. It has the highest concentration of organic matter and microorganisms and is where most of the Earth's biological soil activity occurs. Description Topsoil is composed of mineral particles and organic matter and usually extends to a depth of 5-10 inches (13–25 cm). Together these make a substrate capable of holding water and air which encourages biological activity. There are generally a high concentration of roots in topsoil since this is where plants obtain most of their vital nutrients. It also plays host to significant bacterial, fungal and entomological activity without which soil quality would degrade and become less suitable for plants. Bacteria and fungi can be essential in facilitating nutrient exchange with plants and in breaking down organic matter into a form that roots can absorb. Insects also play important roles in breaking down material and aerating and rotating the soil. Many species directly contribute to the heal ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Glacier
A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as crevasses and seracs, as it slowly flows and deforms under stresses induced by its weight. As it moves, it abrades rock and debris from its substrate to create landforms such as cirques, moraines, or fjords. Although a glacier may flow into a body of water, it forms only on land and is distinct from the much thinner sea ice and lake ice that form on the surface of bodies of water. On Earth, 99% of glacial ice is contained within vast ice sheets (also known as "continental glaciers") in the polar regions, but glaciers may be found in mountain ranges on every continent other than the Australian mainland, including Oceania's high-latitude oceanic island countries such as New Zealand. Between latitudes 35°N and 35°S, glaciers occur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and transitioned into the Renaissance and the Age of Discovery. The Middle Ages is the middle period of the three traditional divisions of Western history: classical antiquity, the medieval period, and the modern period. The medieval period is itself subdivided into the Early, High, and Late Middle Ages. Population decline, counterurbanisation, the collapse of centralized authority, invasions, and mass migrations of tribes, which had begun in late antiquity, continued into the Early Middle Ages. The large-scale movements of the Migration Period, including various Germanic peoples, formed new kingdoms in what remained of the Western Roman Empire. In the 7th century, North Africa and the Middle East—most recently part of the Eastern R ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beach
A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shells or coralline algae. Sediments settle in different densities and structures, depending on the local wave action and weather, creating different textures, colors and gradients or layers of material. Though some beaches form on inland freshwater locations such as lakes and rivers, most beaches are in coastal areas where wave or current action deposits and reworks sediments. Erosion and changing of beach geologies happens through natural processes, like wave action and extreme weather events. Where wind conditions are correct, beaches can be backed by coastal dunes which offer protection and regeneration for the beach. However, these natural forces have become more extreme due to climate change, permanently altering beaches at ver ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
