| Kärkevagge | |
|---|---|
| Geargevággi | |
 | |
| Length | 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) |
| Geography | |
| Location | Sweden, Norrbotten, Kiruna |
| Coordinates | 68°24′07″N 18°18′36″E / 68.40183°N 18.31009°E |
Kärkevagge (Northern Sami: Geargevággi, "Stone Valley") is a short (4 km long) valley in Kiruna Municipality, Sweden. It is easily accessed by a good path from the E10 Kiruna-Narvik highway. Rissajaure, the clearest lake in Sweden, is located at the head of the valley.[1] Karkevagge is noted for the Giant Boulder Deposit (GBD) which fills it with huge jumbled blocks, some the size of houses. One of Sweden's leading geoscientists, Anders Rapp, a world pioneer of quantitative geomorphology, studied the valley for 10 years. He suggested that the parallel rows of blocks had descended in waves from the valleyside cliffs.[2] He estimated the volume of the GBD at 50 million cubic metres. However a large angular cavity beside Rissajaure (top right in picture) has a volume of 42 million cubic metres. The GBD probably descended from it as a rock avalanche and spread down the valley on a glacier, giving it a moraine-like form and visual unity as seen from the air.[3]
References[edit]
- ^ "Bevarandeplan Natura 2000: Låktatjåkka SE0820621" (PDF). Norrbotten County Administrative Board. 2007. p. 5. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 October 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
- ^ Rapp, A. 1960. Recent development of mountain slopes in Karkevagge and surroundings, northern Scandinavia. Geografiska Annaler 42, 65-200
- ^ Jarman, D. 2002. Rock slope failure and landscape evolution in the Caledonian mountains, as exemplified in the Abisko area, northern Sweden. Geografiska Annaler 84A, 213-224