Witold Zuchiewicz

Abstract

Previous views concerning the number and age of planation surfaces in the Polish segmentof the Carpathians varied depending on the state of recognition of geological structure ofthe area. The most commonly accepted opinion says that at least three such surfaces, representingremnants of pre-existing landscapes, can be traced in the study region. These include theintramontane (Early Pliocene), foothills (Late Pliocene) and riverside (Early Pleistocene) levels.Scarce fission track data pertaining to the age of exhumation of the Carpathian orogen indicatethat the preserved “planation surfaces” could not had formed before ca. 7 Ma. A possibility exists,however, that individual bevels could have been shaped at the same time at different altitudes,with respect to local base levels and differentiated bedrock resistance to erosion.

Keywords: planation surfaces, exhumation, Carpathians, Poland

Witold Zuchiewicz, AGH University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Geology, Geophysics and Environmental Protection, Al. Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Kraków, Poland