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Earth 201 > Ch 6: Weathering and Soils > Flashcards

Ch 6: Weathering and Soils Flashcards

1
Q

Biosphere

A

The totality of life-forms on Earth.

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2
Q

Cavern

A

A naturally formed underground chamber or series of chambers most commonly produced by solution activity in limestone.

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3
Q

Chemical weathering

A

The processes by which the internal structure of a mineral is altered by the removal and/or addition of elements.

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4
Q

Climate

A

A description of aggregate weather conditions; the sum of all statistical weather information that helps describe a place or region.

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5
Q

Color

A

A phenomenon of light by which otherwise identical objects may be differentiated.

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6
Q

Crystal

A

Any natural solid with an ordered, repetitive atomic structure.

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7
Q

Crystalline

A

Crystal

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8
Q

Desert

A

One of the two types of dry climate; the driest of the dry climates.

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9
Q

Differential weathering

A

The variation in the rate and degree of weathering caused by such factors as mineral makeup, degree of jointing, and climate.

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10
Q

Dissolution

A

A common form of chemical weathering, it is the process of dissolving into a homogeneous solution, as when an acidic solution dissolves limestone.

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11
Q

Dome

A

A roughly circular upfolded structure.

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12
Q

Electron

A

A negatively charged subatomic particle that has a negligible mass and is found outside an atom’s nucleus.

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13
Q

Element

A

A substance that cannot be decomposed into simpler substances by ordinary chemical or physical means.

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14
Q

Eluviation

A

The washing out of fine soil components from the A horizon by downward-percolating water.

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15
Q

Erosion

A

The incorporation and transportation of material by a mobile agent, such as water, wind, or ice.

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16
Q

Exfoliation dome

A

A large, dome-shaped structure, usually composed of granite, that is formed by sheeting.

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17
Q

Fall

A

A type of movement that is common to masswasting processes that refers to the free falling of detached individual pieces of any size.

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18
Q

Fracture

A

Any break or rupture in rock along which no appreciable movement has taken place.

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19
Q

Frost wedging

A

The mechanical breakup of rock caused by the expansion of freezing water in cracks and crevices.

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20
Q

Granite

A

An abundant, coarse-grained igneous rock composed of about 10–20 percent quartz and 50 percent potassium feldspar. Granite is used as a building material.

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21
Q

Horizon

A

A layer in a soil profile.

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22
Q

Humus

A

Organic matter in soil that is produced by the decomposition of plants and animals.

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23
Q

Hydrolysis

A

A chemical weathering process in which minerals are altered by chemically reacting with water and acids.

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24
Q

Igneous rock

A

Rock formed from the crystallization of magma.

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25
Q

Immature soil

A

A soil that lacks horizons.

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26
Q

Infiltration

A

The movement of surface water into rock or soil through cracks and pore spaces.

27
Q

Interface

A

A common boundary where different parts of a system interact.

28
Q

Ion

A

An atom or a molecule that possesses an electrical charge.

29
Q

Joint

A

A fracture in rock along which there has been no movement.

30
Q

Leaching

A

The depletion of soluble materials from the upper soil by downward-percolating water.

31
Q

Limestone

A

A chemical sedimentary rock composed chiefly of calcite. Limestone can form by inorganic means or from biochemical processes.

32
Q

Marble

A

A soft metamorphic rock formed from limestone or dolostone. Marble of various colors is used for building stones and monuments.

33
Q

Mechanical weathering

A

The physical disintegration of rock, resulting in smaller fragments.

34
Q

Mineral

A

A naturally occurring, inorganic crystalline material with a unique chemical structure.

35
Q

Oxidation

A

The removal of one or more electrons from an atom or ion. So named because elements commonly combine with oxygen.

36
Q

Parent material

A

The material on which a soil develops.

37
Q

Period

A

A basic unit of the geologic time scale that is a subdivision of an era. Periods may be divided into smaller units called epochs.

38
Q

Potassium feldspar

A

An abundant, relatively hard light silicate mineral containing potassium ions in its structure.

39
Q

Quartz

A

A common silicate mineral consisting entirely of silicon and oxygen that resists weathering.

40
Q

Radiocarbon (carbon-14) dating

A

Dating of events from the very recent geologic past (the past few tens of thousands of years) based on the fact that the radioactive isotope of carbon is produced continuously in the atmosphere.

41
Q

Regolith

A

The layer of rock and mineral fragments that nearly everywhere covers Earth’s land surface.

42
Q

Residual soil

A

Soil developed directly from the weathering of the bedrock below.

43
Q

Rills

A

Tiny channels that develop as unconfined flow begins producing threads of current.

44
Q

Rock

A

A consolidated mixture of minerals.

45
Q

Runoff

A

Water that flows over land rather than infiltrating into the ground.

46
Q

Sandstone

A

An abundant, durable sedimentary rock primarily composed of sand-size grains.

47
Q

Sedimentary rock

A

Rock formed from the weathered products of preexisting rocks that have been transported, deposited, and lithified.

48
Q

Sheeting

A

A mechanical weathering process that is characterized by the splitting off of slablike sheets of rock.

49
Q

Silicate mineral

A

Any one of numerous minerals that have the silicon-oxygen tetrahedron as their basic structure.

50
Q

Soil

A

A combination of mineral and organic matter, water, and air; the portion of the regolith that supports plant growth.

51
Q

Soil horizon

A

A layer of soil that has identifiable characteristics produced by chemical weathering and other soil-forming processes.

52
Q

Soil profile

A

A vertical section through a soil, showing its succession of horizons and the underlying parent material.

53
Q

Soil taxonomy

A

A soil classification system that consists of six hierarchical categories, based on observable soil characteristics. The system recognizes 12 soil orders.

54
Q

Soil texture

A

The relative proportions of clay, silt, and sand in a soil. A soil’s texture strongly influences its ability to retain and transmit water and air.

55
Q

Solum

A

The O,A, and B horizons in a soil profile. Living roots and other plant and animal life are largely confined to this zone.

56
Q

Spheroidal weathering

A

Any weathering process that tends to produce a spherical shape from an initially blocky shape.

57
Q

Strike

A

The compass direction of the line of intersection created by a dipping bed or fault and a horizontal surface. A strike is always perpendicular to the direction of dip.

58
Q

Subsoil

A

A term applied to the B horizon of a soil profile.

59
Q

System

A

A group of interacting or interdependent parts that form a complex whole.

60
Q

Talus

A

An accumulation of rock debris at the base of a cliff.

61
Q

Texture

A

The size, shape, and distribution of the particles that collectively constitute a rock.

62
Q

Transported soil

A

Soil that forms on unconsolidated deposits.

63
Q

Weather

A

The state of the atmosphere at any given time.

Earth 201 (9 decks)

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