Geography Key Words Flashcards
Abrasion
Mechanical scraping of a rock surface by friction between rocks and moving particles during their transport by wind, glacier, waves, gravity, running water or erosion.
Alluvium
The fine sediments deposited by streams and rivers.
Attrition
Is a form of coastal or river erosion, when the bed load is eroded by itself and the bed.
Base flow
The usual level of a river.
Bedload
Particles in a flowing fluid (usually water) that are transported along the bed.
Catchment
An area of land where water collects when it rains, often bounded by hills.
Confluence
A place where things merge or flow together (especially rivers).
Corrosion
Rocks or stones can be eroded as water gets into cracks and holes and dissolves the rock through chemical changes.
Delta
A landform produced by the deposition of sediment at the mouth of the river.
Depth
A dimension taken through an object or body of material, usually downward from an upper surface.
Discharge
The quantity of water flowing in a river channel at a particular location and time.
Drainage Basin
Area of land where precipitation collects and drains off into a common outlet, such as into a river, bay, or other body of water.
Erosion
The wearing away and removal of material by a moving force, such as running water.
Estuary
The mouth of a river as it enters the sea.
Eutrophication
The process by which a body of water becomes enriched in dissolved nutrients (such as phosphates) that stimulate the growth of aquatic plant life.
