A mesa is an isolated, flat-topped elevation, ridge or hill, which is bounded from all sides by steep escarpments and stands distinctly above a surrounding plain. Mesas characteristically consist of flat-lying soft sedimentary rocks capped by a more resistant layer or layers of harder rock, e.g. shales overlain by sandstones. The resistant layer acts as a caprock that forms the flat summit of a mesa. The caprock can consist of either sedimentary rocks such as sandstone and limestone; dissected lava flows; or a deeply eroded duricrust. Unlike plateau, whose usage does not imply horizontal layers of bedrock, e.g. Tibetan Plateau, the term mesa applies exclusively to the landforms built of flat-lying strata. Instead, flat-topped plateaus are specifically known as tablelands.
Xiuwen County is located in the middle of Guizhou, which is under the jurisdiction of Guiyang City. It is located at 26 °45 °N, 27 °12 °N, 106 °21 °E, 106 °53'E. It is bordered by Wudang District in the east, Baiyun District in the south, Maotiao River and Qingzhen City in the south, Liuguang River in the west and Jinsha County in the west, and Xifeng County in the north. Longchang Town, where the county is located, is located in the south of the county, 38 kilometers away from the provincial capital Guiyang and 20 kilometers away from the municipal administrative center. The county has a total area of 1075.70 square kilometers and a total population of 311300 (2008). Has won the national scientific and technological progress advanced county, the national cultural relics work advanced county and so on the title. On January 25, 2019, he was selected as the national "Ping an Agricultural Machinery" demonstration county in 2018.