ANALYSIS OF A TOPOGRAPHIC PROFILE

A topographyc profile is the graphyc representation of the relief of an area, obtained by cutting transversaly the contour lines of a topographyc map. My line cross the iberian peninsula northwest to southeast. From cape of Bares to cape of Gata crossing Macizo Galaico, Montes de León, the Northem Sub-plateau, the Central system, Montes de Toledo, the Southerm Sub-plateau and the Baetic System.

 The first unit of relief crossed by my line is Macizo Galaico wich is one of the  mountain edges of the plateau. It was formed when the bebrock of the plateau was fragmented and formed elevated blocks (Macizo Galaico and Cantabrian Range). This process happened in the Alpine Orogeny.  The Macizo Galaico is formed of small rounded (erosion) mountais and its more important ones are Segundera, Cabrera and Los Ancares. 

The second unit of relief is Montes de León, one (with Central System) of the interior systems that forms de plateau.

The third one is the Northem sub-plateau, a sedimentary interior basin formed of params. High and plane structural surfaces. (Small ones are demonominated Oteros or Cerro Testigos.) Campiñas. Low wavy plains crossed by rivers that are formed where params have been erosionated and there, appeared clay and soft earths good for grow crops, and phills that are sloping zones between params and campiñas. The average  altitude of the sub-plateau is 800-850. The plateau was affected in several moments by the Alpine Orogeny, since the bebrock of the plateau, was fragmented. It turned on sunken blocks that created the Sub-plateau

The surthem sub-plateau was formed like the northen one.

The sunken blocks created the northern and southern plateaus while the elevated blocks created the Central System and Montes de Toledo. The Central System is the highest in the plateau and divides it in two parts, it is located between Castilla y León and Extremadura, Castilla la Mancha. The most important mountain ranges are Somosierra, Guadarrama, Gredos, Peña de Francia y Gata as well as the highest mountains are Almanzor (2.592 m) and Canchal de la Ceja (2.428 m). Besides, the Montes de Toledo is a mountain range located in the southern plateau. The most important mountain range is the Guadalupe while highest place there is the Pico Villuercas (1.603 m).


The sourthem sub-plateau was formed like the northem one. 

The last mountain range that I´m going to talk about is the Baetic System, located in the oriental part of Andalucía. It first appeared during the Paleozoic era, when the Macizo Bético-Rifeño emerged. After that, in the Mesozoic era the Sedimentary Basin, which was very close to the massif, was filled up with sediments. These materials folded during the Cenozoic era, creating the Baetic System. It´s divided in three sectors. The Cordillera Penibética is the one closest to the Sea, it includes the mountains of sierra Nevada, Mulhacén (3478 m) and Velota (3398 m). Cordillera Subbética is the interior sector and Grazalema, Ubrique and Cazorla form part of it. Between these two mountain ranges is a depression called Intrabetic, it is fragmentated in smaller depressions as well, called hoyas as the Ronda, Antequera, Guadix or Baza ones.