Paleowind directions in northern North America from stabilized sand dunes

Past wind directions are mapped from stabilized sand dunes in Canada and the northern United States. The map shows the near-surface wind directions responsible for transporting sand when the dunes were active. The directions were mapped by interpreting the orientation of parabolic dunes from open-sourced Lidar (light detection and ranging) derived digital terrain models. The map also shows new dune areas that add to the existing knowledge of dune fields in North America. The interpreted wind directions provide insight into the past atmospheric circulation patterns that occurred during the deglaciation of North America and the transition to modern circulation patterns that occur today.

Publisher

Natural Resources Canada

Resources

8

Catalogue metadata updated

2025-10-15