Definitions Flashcards
Silica replacement of a tree
Permineralization
Seashell is buried in sediment then dissolved
Mold
Replica of the surface of fish in mud
Impression
Deer footprints preserved in rock
Tracks
Residue of carbon remains of a fossil insect
Carbonization
Hollow spaces that fill with mud or mineral
Cast
Spider trapped in tree sap
Amber
The physical breakdown (disintegration) and chemical alteration (decomposition) of rock at or near Earth’s surface
weathering
) A glacier that forms when one or more alpine glaciers emerge from the confining walls of mountain valleys and spread out to create a broad sheet in the lowlands at the base of mountains
Piedmont glacier
A glacier confined to a mountain valley, which in most instances was previously a stream valley
alpine glacier (or “valley glacier”)
A dry, flat lake bed
playa
Center of basin where streams flow and briefly accumulate before evaporating or infiltrating bedrock
playa lake
A very large, thick mass of glacial ice flowing outward in all directions from one or more accumulation centers
ice sheet
Small mountain ranges separating circular downfolded structures
basin and range
Encrusted salt layer left behind once water evaporates
salt flat
A discontinuous pattern of intermittent streams that do not flow to the ocean
interior drainage
Large bedrock knobs projecting above a sediment-filled basin
inselberg
A fan-shaped deposit formed when a stream’s slope is abruptly reduced
alluvial fan
An apron of sediment along a mountain front created by the coalescence of alluvial fans
bajada
A tongue of ice normally flowing rapidly outward from an ice cap or ice sheet, usually through mountainous terrain to the sea
outlet glacier
