TERM OF THE WEEK
playa step: (colloquial – Southern High Plains) The relatively level or gently inclined “terrace-like” bench or toeslope within a large playa basin flanking and topographically higher than the playa floor and below the playa slope; a bench or step-like surface within a playa basin that breaks the continuity of the playa slope and modified by erosion and/or deposition. Temporary ponding may occur in response to precipitation/runoff events (Schoeneberger and Wysocki, personal communication, 2013). Compare playa slope.