sastrugi

1 9.9

Long hard ridges of snow shaped by strong wind in very cold places

noun
/səˈstrʌɡi/

Specialized

: sastrugi

The vast landscape was marked by sastrugi, creating stunning wavelike ridges that shimmered under the bright sun.

Examples

Walking over the sharp sastrugi made the expedition much more difficult for the team.
As we trekked across the frozen tundra, we encountered high sastrugi that made walking increasingly difficult.
The sled slowed as it crossed the uneven sastrugi stretching across the frozen plain.
Photographers captured the dramatic patterns of sastrugi sculpted by the Antarctic winds.
The sastrugi in Antarctica can be quite dangerous.
Did you see the sastrugi on the way to the research station?
The photograph captured the intricate patterns of sastrugi on the surface of the snow, revealing the artistry of nature.

Surface Forms

sastrugi singular

sastrugus plural

Etymology

Sastrugi comes from Russian, probably from sastruga or zastruga, a word for a 'ridge' or a place 'scraped' by the wind. So sastrugi are the hard, wavelike snow ridges the wind 'carves' across frozen plains.