Desert Pavement Formation

The concentration of closely packed gravel and stone fragments into a tightly interlocking surface layer across a desert floor, formed as wind deflation removes fine sand and dust from between and beneath the stones, or as repeated wetting and drying gradually lifts coarser fragments upward through the soil. Once formed, the resulting pavement armors the ground beneath it against further deflation, which is why many desert pavements are exceptionally old, stable surfaces.