Geomorphology and Genesis of Sahl Abad Playa - East of Iran

Sahl Abad playa is located at about 120 kilometers south of Birjand at Birjand-Nehbandan road in South Khorasan province. This playa is geographically located between 58o 40′ to 60o 10′ east longitude and 31o 50′ to 32o 15′ north latitude, the area of playa is about 1116 km2 (Figure 1). The study area is located in dry and arid climatic conditions. Since there is no meteorology station in Sahl Abad playa, therefore based on the figures of the surrounding areas, it is possible to estimate the annual average of precipitation of all the area about 150 mm (Eshagian, 1990).Formation of Sahl Abad salt flats has made a new ecology in the north east area of Nehbandan, in this area, extraction of salt storages and different kinds of industrial salts creates a suitable opportunity for sustained job opportunity in the deprived area of Sahl Abad. Therefore recognizing its geomorphology features and natural geography will be a great help for development planning of the area. It is hoped that this study leads to a better recognition of the said flat and be used in the studies for geographical investigations of the area, watershed management, flood control, exploring natural and mineral resources and other similar cases.Sahl Abad playa is an active sedimentary basin in quaternary. Geomorphology and morpho-tectonic of this playa and the mechanism of its formation are the main goals of the present study.