Glacial Landscapes in the UK

Question 1

Relief of the land

Answer 1

Refers to the highest and lowest elevation points in an area. e.g. mountains and rivers are typically the highest elevation points

Question 2

Topography

Answer 2

The natural features of land, especially the shape of its surface.

Question 3

Altitude

Answer 3

Height above sea level, measured in metres or feet.

Question 4

Land use

Answer 4

The purpose or function of land for example pasture, grassland, retail.

Question 5

Lowland

Answer 5

Are close to or below 200m above sea level. One example is the Fens in East Anglia.

Question 6

Uplands

Answer 6

Are normally made up of mountains or high hills. Normally they are areas over 600m above sea level. Examples include the Cumbria mountains in the Lake District.

Question 7

Glacial erosion

Answer 7

The wearing away and removal of the land by flowing water, ice or wind.

Question 8

Plucking

Answer 8

A type of erosion where melt water in the glacier freezes onto rocks, and as the ice moves forward it plucks or pulls out large pieces along the rock joints.

Question 9

Abrasion

Answer 9

Erosion caused by rocks and boulders in the base of the glacier acting like a giant file scratching and scraping the rocks below.

Question 10

Bulldozing

Answer 10

Ice pushes material of all shapes and sizes as it moves slowly forward.

Question 11

Glacial Till

Answer 11

Sediment transported by ice.

Question 12

Moraine

Answer 12

Frost-shattered rock debris and material eroded from the valley floor and sides, transported and deposited by glaciers.

Question 13

Outwash

Answer 13

Sediment deposited by meltwater streams in front of, and underneath,
a glacier. The material is sorted and rounded by water action.

Question 14

Corrie

Answer 14

Armchair-shaped hollow in the mountainside formed by glacial erosion, rotational slip and freeze-thaw weathering.
This is where the valley glacier begins.
When the ice melts, it can leave a small circular lake called a tarn.

Question 15

Arete

Answer 15

A sharp, knife-like ridge formed between two corries cutting back by processes of erosion and freeze thaw.

Question 16

Pyramidal Peak

Answer 16

Where several corries cut back to meet at a central point, the mountain takes the form of a steep pyramid.

Question 17

conservation

Answer 17

Managing the environment in order to preserve, protect or restore it.

Question 18

drumlin

Answer 18

A hill made of glacial till deposited by a moving glacier, usually elongated or oval in shape, with the longer axis parallel to the former direction of ice.

Question 19

erratics

Answer 19

Rocks which have been transported and deposited by a glacier some distance from their source region.

Question 20

Freeze-thaw weathering

Answer 20

Occurs in cold climates when temperatures are often around freezing point and where exposed rocks contain many cracks.

Water enters the cracks during the warmer day and freezes during the colder night.

As the water turns into ice it expands and exerts pressure on
the surrounding rock, causing pieces to break off.

Question 21

glacial trough

Answer 21

A river valley widened and deepened by the erosive action of glaciers; it becomes ‘U’-shaped instead of the ‘V’-shape of a river valley.

Question 22

hanging valley

Answer 22

A tributary valley to the main glacier, too cold and high up for ice to be able to easily move.
It therefore was not eroded as much as the lower main valley, and today is often the site for a waterfall crashing several hundred metres to the main valley floor.

Question 23

land use conflicts

Answer 23

Disagreements which arise when users of the land do not agree on how it should be used.

Question 24

ribbon lake

Answer 24

A long, narrow lake found in glaciated valleys formed in locations where the glacier had more erosive power, e.g. in areas of softer rock, where the valley gradient temporarily steepened or a tributary glacier joined the main valley

Question 25

rotational slip

Answer 25

This occurs when the ice moves in a circular motion.
This process can help to erode hollows in the landscape, and deepen hollows into bowl shapes.

Question 26

truncated spur

Answer 26

A former river valley spur which has been sliced off by a valley glacier, forming cliff-like edges.