by Matteo Cavallito<\/p>\n
The slopes of Arctic regions often display striking natural patterns, including circles, polygons, stripes and large terraces<\/strong> resembling a staircase. They are the result of solifluction<\/strong>, the extremely slow movement of the upper soil layer caused by permafrost thawing. For decades, geomorphologists have sought to understand how these structures form spontaneously, but without success. At least until now.<\/p>\n A new study<\/a> may provide a convincing explanation by exploring the surprising analogy between this type of movement and the formation of waves in a highly unusual material: oobleck<\/strong>, the non-Newtonian fluid<\/a> obtained by mixing water and cornstarch.<\/p>\n