Erosion Vocab Flashcards
erosion
the process of eroding or being eroded by wind, water, or other natural agents.
weathering
the process of wearing or being worn by long exposure to the atmosphere.
water cycle
the cycle of processes by which water circulates between the earth’s oceans, atmosphere, and land, involving precipitation as rain and snow, drainage in streams and rivers, and return to the atmosphere by evaporation and transpiration.
evaporation
the process of turning from liquid into vapor.
condensation
water which collects as droplets on a cold surface when humid air is in contact with it.
precipitation
the action or process of precipitating a substance from a solution.
surface runoff
In earth science, erosion is the action of surface processes that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth’s crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is distinct from weathering which involves no movement.
tributary
a river or stream flowing into a larger river or lake.
watershed
an area or ridge of land that separates waters flowing to different rivers, basins, or seas.
continental divide
A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not connected to the open sea.
deposition
the action of deposing someone, especially a monarch.
delta
the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet ( Δ, δ ), transliterated as ‘d’.
floodplain
an area of low-lying ground adjacent to a river, formed mainly of river sediments and subject to flooding.
water table
the level below which the ground is saturated with water.
sewage treatment plants
Sewage treatment is a type of wastewater treatment which aims to remove contaminants from sewage to produce an effluent that is suitable for discharge to the surrounding environment or an intended reuse application, thereby preventing water pollution from raw sewage discharges.
septic tank
A septic tank is an underground chamber made of concrete, fiberglass, or plastic through which domestic wastewater flows for basic treatment. Settling and anaerobic processes reduce solids and organics, but the treatment efficiency is only moderate. Septic tank systems are a type of simple onsite sewage facility.
sea stacks
a chimney, especially one on a factory, or a vertical exhaust pipe on a vehicle.
sea arches
A natural arch, natural bridge, or rock arch is a natural rock formation where an arch has formed with an opening underneath. Natural arches commonly form where inland cliffs, coastal cliffs, fins or stacks are subject to erosion from the sea, rivers or weathering.
sea caves
A sea cave, also known as a littoral cave, is a type of cave formed primarily by the wave action of the sea. The primary process involved is erosion. Sea caves are found throughout the world, actively forming along present coastlines and as relict sea caves on former coastlines
wave-cut terraces
a shallow-water shelf inclining gently away from the base of an eroded sea cliff.
headlands
a narrow piece of land that projects from a coastline into the sea.
beach
a pebbly or sandy shore, especially by the ocean between high- and low-water marks.
