# Lineament

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{{Short description|Linear landscape feature}}
''See also [Line (geometry)](/source/Line_(geometry))''

A '''lineament''' is a linear feature in a [landscape](/source/landscape) which is an expression of an underlying [geological structure](/source/Structural_geology) such as a [fault](/source/fault_(geology)). Typically a lineament will appear as a fault-aligned valley, a series of fault or fold-aligned hills, a straight coastline or indeed a combination of these features. [Fracture zone](/source/Fracture_zone)s, [shear zone](/source/shear_zone)s and [igneous intrusion](/source/igneous_intrusion)s such as [dykes](/source/dike_(geology)) can also be expressed as [geomorphic](/source/Geomorphology) lineaments.

Lineaments are often apparent in geological or topographic maps and can appear obvious on aerial or satellite photographs. There are for example, several instances within [Great Britain](/source/Great_Britain).  In [Scotland](/source/Scotland) the [Great Glen Fault](/source/Great_Glen_Fault) and [Highland Boundary Fault](/source/Highland_Boundary_Fault) give rise to lineaments as does the [Malvern Line](/source/Malvern_Hills) in western [England](/source/England) and the [Neath Disturbance](/source/Neath_Disturbance) in [South Wales](/source/South_Wales).

The term 'megalineament' has been used to describe such features on a continental scale. The trace of the [San Andreas Fault](/source/San_Andreas_Fault) might be considered an example.<ref>Whitten & Brooks, The Penguin Dictionary of Geology 1972</ref>
The [Trans Brazilian Lineament](/source/Trans_Brazilian_Lineament) and the [Trans-Saharan Belt](/source/Trans-Saharan_Belt), taken together, form perhaps the longest coherent shear zone on the Earth, extending for about 4,000&nbsp;km.<ref name=Attoh2008>{{Cite journal|bibcode=2008AGUSM.S51A..04A
 |title=The Neoproterozoic Trans-Saharan/Trans-Brasiliano shear zones: Suggested Tibetan Analogs
 |journal=American Geophysical Union
 |volume=51
 |author1=Attoh, K. |author2=Brown, L. D. |year=2008
 }}</ref>

Lineaments have also been identified on other [planet](/source/planet)s and their [moon](/source/natural_satellite)s. Their origins may be radically different from those of terrestrial lineaments due to the differing [tectonic](/source/tectonic) processes involved.

==References==
{{reflist}}

Category:Geomorphology
Category:Structural geology

{{tectonics-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Lineament](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lineament) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lineament?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.