Sedimentary markers of modern morphodynamic processes on the sandstone tor "Kamin" (village Urych, Eastern Beskydy, Ukrainian Carpathians

Abstract

The paper studies the types of modern morphodynamic processes on the sandstone tor “Kamin`” (“Stone”) in the village Urych (Eastern Beskydy, Ukrainian Carpathians) as a nature monument and historical and cultural reserve. It reveals interrelationships between the modern manifestations of the processes and the sedimentological facies of the Paleogene rocks of the Yamna Formation. During the formation of the Carpathian trust fault structure, they were created in the geodynamic conditions of the Outer Carpathian deep-water oceanic paleobasin and deformed during the stages of accretion and orogeny. The main research methods were morphological, morphodynamic, sedimentological, and lithological. Modern morphodynamic processes on the tor walls are classified by their origin, localization within the studied object, and the amount of tor wall coverage. Morphodynamic processes can be classified into different types such as soaking and very small pits; destruction; flaking; spalling; dimples weathering; alveolar weathering; corrasion and washing away the grains; linear underground erosion; biogenic superficial weathering; biogenic linear weathering; block collapses; joint-guided weathering: along tectonic, tensile, weathering, lithological cracks; gravity cascade folds. According to the amount of coverage of the tor walls, the following are distinguished: microprocesses (local manifestations), medium-scale and large-scale processes, with a destruction depth of 1-10 сm. Medium-scale processes that occur on tor superficials are related to primary sedimentary structural-textural features of rocks and their lithological composition. Fractured paragenesis of the Sub-Carpathian and Anti-Carpathian directions dominate large-scale processes. Studies of the tor destruction processes are important to determine the preservation methods of the sandstone tor “Kamin`” as a valuable object of historical, cultural, and geotourism heritage. The obtained results indicate that individual tor blocks are strongly affected by superficial processes, on which deep polygenetic cracks are superimposed. This provides a basis to implement measures for strengthening the stability of the tor.