A general term for any ground surface exhibiting a discernibly ordered, more or less sysmmetrical, morphological pattern of ground and, where present, vegetation. View Example Image
Well-defined, more or less symmetrical forms, such as circles, polygons, nets, steps, and stripes, that are characteristic of, but not necessarily confined to, surficial material subject to intense frost action, especially in polar, subpolar, and arctic regions. Patterned ground in the Pasco Basin, however, appears to be related to seismicity* that occurred during or soon after cataclysmic flooding.
Term used to describe a number of surface features found in periglacial environments. These features can resemble circles, polygons, nets, steps, and stripes. The development of some of these shapes is thought to be the result of freeze-thaw action.