The Muddus plains is a landscape type in northern Sweden characterized by its flat topography dotted with

inselberg An inselberg or monadnock ( ) is an isolated rock hill, knob, ridge, or small mountain that rises abruptly from a gently sloping or virtually level surrounding plain. In Southern Africa, a similar formation of granite is known as a koppie, an ...

s. The topographic character of the Muddus plains was first described in detail by Walter Wråk in 1908. The Muddus plains are part of the Norrland terrain. The northern lower levels of Southern Norway's Paleic surface are considered to be equivalent to the Muddus plains. The plains formed in connection to the uplift of the northern

Scandinavian Mountains The Scandinavian Mountains or the Scandes is a mountain range that runs through the Scandinavian Peninsula. The western sides of the mountains drop precipitously into the North Sea and Norwegian Sea, forming the fjords of Norway, whereas to th ...

in the

Paleogene The Paleogene Period ( ; also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene) is a geologic period and system that spans 43 million years from the end of the Cretaceous Period Ma (million years ago) to the beginning of the Neogene Period Ma. It is the fir ...

. The uplift caused the surface to tilt eastward and incised valleys opened up to the east. This region in to east of the Scandinavian Mountains proper was a tectonically stable region close to a

base level In geology and geomorphology a base level is the lower limit for the vertical position of an erosion, erosion process. The modern term was introduced by John Wesley Powell in 1875. The term was subsequently appropriated by William Morris Davis wh ...

where topography evolved to form the Muddus plains. The key processes involved in the formation of the Muddus plain include

etching Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other type ...

, stripping and pediplanation. The climate under which these processes occurred was likely warm relative to the present. To the south the Muddus plains is considered to be equivalent to the lower levels of the paleic surface in south Norway, meaning that topography is likely to have developed at the same time and

level Level or levels may refer to: Engineering *Level (optical instrument), a device used to measure true horizontal or relative heights * Spirit level or bubble level, an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is horizontal or vertical *C ...

, and by the same processes. Rivers in the Muddus plains flow mostly towards the east. This contrast with the southeastern direction there rivers turn further downstream outside the Muddus plains and has been explained by the inference that the river courses in the Muddus plains reflect an ancient drainage pattern contrary to the Late Cenozoic river courses close to the

Gulf of Bothnia The Gulf of Bothnia (; ; ) is divided into the Bothnian Bay and the Bothnian Sea, and it is the northernmost arm of the Baltic Sea, between Finland's west coast ( East Bothnia) and the northern part of Sweden's east coast ( West Bothnia an ...

References

Inselberg plains Plains of Sweden Erosion landforms Plains of Norway {{erosion-stub

See also

References