Researchers use volcanic islands to measure how rainfall
sets the pace of landscape formation.
If you’ve ever stood on a hill during a rainstorm, you’ve
probably witnessed landscape evolution, at least on a small scale: rivulets of
water streaming down a slope, cutting deeper trenches in the earth when the
rain turns heavier.
It’s a simple phenomenon that scientists have long believed
applies to large-scale landforms as well — that is, rivers cut faster into
mountains that receive heavier precipitation.