Forces That Sculpture The Earth Flashcards

1
Q
  • disintegration or alteration of rock in its natural or original position
  • breaking down or dissolving of rocks and minerals on the surface of the Earth
A

WEATHERING

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2
Q

TYPES OF WEATHERING:

  • caused by the effect of changing temperature on rocks
  • breaking down of rocks into smaller pieces without undergoing any change in mineral composition
A

Physical or Mechanical Weathering

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3
Q

TYPES OF PHYSICAL OR MECHANICAL WEATHERING:

  • usually occurs in mountainous regions like the Alps or Snowdonia
  • happens when rainwater or snow-melt collects in rocks’ cracks then the water expands
A

Freeze-thaw

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4
Q

TYPES OF PHYSICAL OR MECHANICAL WEATHERING

  • occurs as cracks develop parallel to the land surface as a result of pressure reduction during uplift and erosion
  • happens due to the combined effects of change in temperature and the expansion of minerals inside the rocks
A

✓ Exfoliation

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5
Q

TYPES OF WEATHERING:

  • caused by rain water (slightly acidic) reacting with the mineral grains in rocks to form new minerals and soluble salts
  • occurs more rapidly at higher temperature like those in warm, and damp climatic regions
  • first stage in soil formation
A

Chemical Weathering

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6
Q

TYPES OF CHEMICAL WEATHERING;

  • carbon dioxide in the air dissolves in rainwater making it weakly acidic
  • weak carbonic acid is able to dissolve limestone as it seeps in the cracks and cavities, Acid Rain
  • polluting gases like Sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide dissolve in rainwater making it strong acid and when it attacks rocks, it leaves serious damage and breakdown
A

✓Solution

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7
Q

TYPES OF CHEMICAL WEATHERING;

  • breakdown of rocks by acidic water to form clay and soluble salt
  • happens when acid rain reacts with rock- forming minerals like feldspar but quartz is the only common rock-forming mineral not affected by this Spheroidal Weathering
  • rusty color
A

✓ Hydrolysis

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8
Q

TYPES OF CHEMICAL WEATHERING

  • breakdown of rock by oxygen and water, often giving iron-rich rocks a rusty colored weathered surface
A

✓ Oxidation

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9
Q

TYPES OF WEATHERING:

  • occurs when plants break up rocks with roots, prying the rock apart
  • burrowing animals like badgers, moles and rabbits, burrow into rocks in search
  • for shelter or food only refers to weathering caused by organisms such as animals, plants, fungi and microorganisms
A

Biological Weathering

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10
Q

MAJOR CAUSES OF WEATHERING:

  • occurs in the presence of water in regions with temperature near the freezing point (32 degrees Fahrenheit or 0 degrees Celsius)
  • particularly common in Alpine areas and around the edges of glaciers
  • when water seeps into a crevice in the rock and freezes, it expands causing deeper cracks and making rocks to eventually break apart
A

Frost Weathering

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11
Q

MAJOR CAUSES OF WEATHERING:

  • occurs when heat absorbed from the surrounding air causes a rock to expand; subsequent expansion and contraction when rock cools can cause thin sheets of rock’s outer layer to peel off
  • moisture can also play a great role as well
  • usually happens in desert areas where there is a variation in temperature suing night and day
A

Thermal Stress

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12
Q

MAJOR CAUSES OF WEATHERING:

  • caused when water get into rock in ways like up from a groundwater supply, action of seawater waves along rocky coast and downward through rainfall
  • water evaporates, leaving salt behind which then crystallizes and the growing crystals can exert pressure on the rock that eventually break it
A

Salt Wedging

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13
Q

MAJOR CAUSES OF WEATHERING:

  • roots of trees and other plants can grow into small spaces and gaps between rocks, as they grow bigger they exert pressure on rocks around them causing a widening or gaps and cracks which result to breakdown microorganisms and lichens remove minerals from rocks making them weaker and when they are subjected to other forces
A

Biological Weathering

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14
Q

FACTORS AFFECTING WEATHERING:

  • rocks are subjected to weathering according to their composition; igneous are resistive to mechanical weathering but heavily affected by chemical weathering while some sedimentary rocks are subjected to mechanical weathering
  • rate of weathering depends largely on the composition of the material that holds the grains together; rocks that are strongly jointed and fissured are more subjected to weathering than rocks with few cracks
A

Nature of Rock

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15
Q

FACTORS AFFECTING WEATHERING:

  • variation in climatic condition heavily affects the rapidness and slowness of weathering; regions with dry and cold climates tends to have relatively slow weathering processes compared to those regions with humid and warm climates
A

Climate

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16
Q

FACTORS AFFECTING WEATHERING:
surrounding greatly phenomena influences weathering; altitude, slope of land, exposure to sun and rain all have their impacts on how rocks can be weathered

A

Topographic Condition

17
Q

-movement of weathered rock by wind, water, glaciers and gravity

-removal of surface material from Earth’s crust, primarily soil and rock debris

-transportation of eroded materials by natural agencies from the point of removal

A

EROSION

18
Q

TYPES OF EROSION:

  • water is the most important erosional agent and erodes
  • most commonly all forms of water can be erosional
  • raindrops create splash erosion that moves tiny particles of soil
A

Water Erosion

19
Q

TYPES OF EROSION BY RAINFALL:
impact of a falling raindrop which can scatter tiny soil particles as far as six meters

A

Splash Erosion

20
Q

TYPES OF EROSION BY RAINFALL:
erosion caused by runoff

A

Sheet Erosion

21
Q

TYPES OF EROSION BY RAINFALL:
erosion that takes place as runoff develops into a discrete stream (rill)

A

Rill Erosion

22
Q

TYPES OF EROSION BY RAINFALL:

stage which in soil particles are transported through large channels

A

Gully Erosion

23
Q

TYPES OF EROSION

  • also known as Aeolian erosion from the Greek God of winds, Aeolus
  • erosion of this form is partially responsible for the formation of sand dunes
A

Wind erosion

24
Q

TYPES OF EROSION:

  • The erosive power of moving ice is a bit greater than that of water
  • glaciers perform erosive functions like they pluck and abrade
  • plucking occurs when water enters cracks under glacier, freezing and breaking off pieces of rocks
  • abrasion cuts into the rock under the glacier, scooping rock up like a bulldozer and smoothing and polishing rock surface
A

Ice Erosion

25
Q

TYPES OF EROSION:

  • waves in oceans and other bodies of water produce coastal erosion
  • pure energy of waves along with the chemical content of water is what erodes coastline rocks
A

Wave Erosion

26
Q

TYPES OF EROSION:

  • erosion of permafrost along a river or coastline caused by warm temperature which makes ice-rich permafrost to break off and often carry valuable vegetation topsoil and
A

Thermal Erosion

27
Q

FACTORS IMPACTING EROSION:

  • perhaps the most influential force impacting effects of erosion
  • includes precipitation, wind, and seasonal variability
A

Climate

28
Q

FACTORS IMPACTING EROSION:

  • The shape of the surface features of an area can contribute to how erosion impacts
  • earthen floodplains of river valleys are prone to erosion unlike rocky flood channels; soft rock like chalk erode more quickly than hard rocks like granite
A

Topography

29
Q

FACTORS IMPACTING EROSION
- can slow the impact of erosion because plant roots adhere to soil and rock particles preventing their transport during rainfall or wind events

A

Vegetation

30
Q

FACTORS IMPACTING EROSION:
- areas like desert which lack thick vegetation often exposed to more erosion of landscapes

  • responsible for the shaping of landscapes and thus influences the way erosion impacts tectonic uplift, for example, cay uses one part of the landscape to rise higher than others
A

Tectonic Activity

31
Q

EROSION CONTROL:

  • plowing in furrows which follow the contour of the land prevent formation of gullies by the direct flow of water down the slopes
A

Contour plowing

32
Q

EROSION CONTROL:

arrangement of crops in alternate bands of row crops and cover crops which help to hold the soil

A

Strip cropping

33
Q

EROSION CONTROL:

  • construction of step-like ridges. following the contours of the field these hold or slow down the runoff water and prevent extensive erosion of the slope
A

Terracing

34
Q

EROSION CONTROL;

  • alternation of row crops one year with cover crops the next year arrests the early stages of erosion and allows small gullies to fill with soil
A

Crop rotation