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How to Separate Two Cirques

As defined in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a cirque as a basin on a mountain that has steep walls and usually forms one end of a valley. These basins are created by glaciers sliding down the side of a valley, eroding the soil as it moves. Separating two cirques on a map is simple because their creation gives them very distinct identifying marks so you can easily tell where one begins and another ends.

Things You'll Need

Map with contour lines

Instructions

- 1
  Find an area on your map that has no contour lines (the squiggly lines on the map). The absence of contour lines means that this is a very deep area. This is the cirque.
- 2
  Find the lines around the blank area. These lines should be very close together and in a U-shape. The closer together the lines are the steeper the sides of the cirque.
- 3
  Find where the lines start to get farther and farther apart. This is where the land is starting to flatten out and it is the edge of the cirques. Another cirque will be on the other side of these lines.

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