Earth Science Exo/Endogenic Flashcards
is a process when rocks are breaking into smaller pieces whether physically or chemically.
Weathering
happens when rocks break up into tiny pieces without a change in their composition.
Physical or Mechanical weathering
joints originally form when decompression causes rocks to crack. This typically occurs as the forces of erosion remove the rock’s overburden (i.e. the stuff on top of it.) “Exploding rocks” in deep mineshafts are also fracturing as a result of uneven unloading.
Unloading
when water gets inside the joints, alternate freezing and thawing episodes pry the rock apart.
Frost wedging
process wherein tectonic forces lift deeply buried rocks close to the surface and then erosion removes overlying rock, removing the pressure, and causing the rock to expand and fracture
Pressure release
a process that consists of the grinding and rounding of rock surfaces by friction and impact caused by waves and glaciers. (Takes longer compared to other physical weathering, when air,water passes(agi) through the rock and reacts to it)
Abrasion
force exerted by salt crystal that formed as water evaporates from pore spaces or cracks in rocks can cause the rock to fall apart.
Salt crystal growth
a process in which a crack in a rock is expanded by plant roots or broken by and animals (including humans).
Biological or Organic activity
occur when temperature changes rapidly, causing the surface of the rock to heat or cool.
Thermal expansion and contraction
happens when rocks break down into tiny pieces and changes rock’s composition or internal structure of minerals. Some of its causes are oxidation, leaching, hydration, and carbonation. The following are examples of chemical weathering.
Chemical weathering
a process in which a mineral or rock dissolves in water forming a solution like halite (rock salt) dissolved in water. Dissociation of molecules into ions
Dissolution
a process in which a mineral reacts with water to form a new mineral that has water as part of its crystal structure like feldspar to clay.
Hydrolysis
a process in which a mineral decomposes when it reacts with oxygen like the rusting of iron.
Oxidation
4 Main Exogenic Processes
(Mnemonics: W,E,D,M) Weathering, Erosion, Deposition, Mass Wasting
5 Factors that affect the type, extent, and rate at which weathering takes place:
(Mnemonics: C, RT, RS, T, T) Climate, Rock Type, Rock Structure, Topography, Time)
is the removal of rocks and soil. If a channel is composed of bedrock, erosion is accomplished by the abrasive action of water armed with sediment. If a channel is composed of loose material, considerable lifting and removal can be accomplished by the impact of water alone.
Erosion
is when a stream slows down, its velocity decreases and its competence reduced and sediments begin to drop out, largest particles first and then begin to settle out. Particles of the same size are deposited together.
Deposition
is the movement of rock, soil, and regolith downward due to the action of gravity. It occurs on both terrestrial and submarine slopes. It is called slope movement. It does not require transporting medium like erosion. (Examples: Mudflow, Avalanche, Landslide)
Mass wasting or slope movement
7 Types of Physical/Mechanical Weathering
(Mnemonics: P,U,T,A,OA,FW,SCG) Pressure release, Unloading, Temperature, Abrasion, Organic Activity, Frost Wedging, Salt Crystal Growth
3 Types of Chemical Weathering
(Mnemonics: D,H,O) Dissolution, Hydrolysis, Oxidation
areas that are cold and dry tend to have slow rates of chemical weathering and weathering is mostly physical; chemical weathering is most active in areas with high temperature and rainfall.
Climate (More rainfall, increases rate of weathering, the hotter it is the higher rate of weathering)
(if a rock experiences both Hot & Cold Temperatures, and it expands and contracts again and again, this cycle causes the breakdown of rocks, it will exfoliate, and it will get smaller and smaller).
- Cold and dry =
- High temperature and high rainfall =
= slow rate of chemical weathering
= high rate of chemical weathering
The presence of ______ which is an important chemical weathering agent increases the rate of weathering. High temperature enhances chemical reactions.
Water
the minerals that constitute rocks have different susceptibilities to weathering. The susceptibility of minerals (from high to low) roughly follows the inverse of the order of crystallization of minerals in Bowen’s reaction series.
Rock type
Examples: Halite (Rock Salt) is made of soluble materials, hence it will dissolve in water
Limestone can easily be affected by acid, because of it’s composition since it is made up of calcium-carbonate.