Classification of landforms in Southern Portugal (Ria Formosa Basin)

A Geographic Information Systems-based tool is used for macro-landform classification following the Hammond procedure, based upon a Digital Terrain Model (DTM) created from ordinary Kriging. Gentle slopes, surface curvature, highlands and lowlands areas are derived from the DTM. Combining this information allows the classification of terrain units (landforms). The procedure is applied to the Ria Formosa basin (Southern Portugal), with five different terrain types classified (plains, tablelands, plains with hills, open hills and hills)