Glaciers Flashcards
When did the last ice age take place?
18,000 years ago
What was the extent of the last ice age?
All of northern UK and northern Europe
How do glaciers shape the land?
- Erosion
- Weathering
- Transportation
- Deposition
What are the two main types of erosion in glaciers?
- Abrasion-Sandpapering affect where rocks that have been frozen into the bottom are dragged along
- Plucking-Rocks become frozen to the side of the glacier then as it moves along its pulled off
What is the main type of weathering with glaciers?
-Freeze Thaw-Ice melts then gets into cracks then freezes so it expands slightly. The process repeats until bits drop off.
What is a Corrie?
A bowl-like formation in the side of a mountain
How are Corries formed?
- Snow collects in a shallow side of mountain
- Every winter snow gets more compact
- Back wall gets steeper due to freeze thaw weathering
- Base of the corrie gets deeper due to abrasion
- As the Glacier moves it goes out of the Corrie via rotational slip
- When Glacier melts it leaves a Tarn (Corrie Lake)
What are the erosional features caused by a glacier and how are they formed?
- Hanging valley- A second glacier that did not fully erode but joined the main glacier
- U shaped valley-The flat bottomed valley caused by abrasion and plucking
- Truncated Spurs-Cut of interlocking spurs from rivers
- Ribbon Lake-Where the abrasion ran the deepest water may collect and form a lake
- Arete-Narrow ridges created when two corries form back to back
- Pyramidal peak-Caused by three corries eroding back to back forming
What are the processes of glacial transportation?
- Plucking-Plucked off rocks are carried with the movement of the Glacier
- Freeze-Thaw weathering-causes rocks to be carried
- Bulldozing-Any material collected by the glacier is pushed along
- Rotational slip-The movement of ice in a Corrie
What is a moraine?
Any material carried by the glacier
What is the difference between a lateral and terminal moraine?
- Lateral-Material deposited on both sides of the glacier
- Terminal-Material deposited at the end of the glacier
What is a medial moraine?
-Material deposited in the middle of the glacier by two lateral moraines meeting
What is glacial till?
All material deposited by a glacier
What is an erratic?
Rocks deposited by the glacier that does not match the surrounding rock type
What is a drumlin?
Moraine which has been shaped in a way that is tall at one end then reduced and is smaller than the other. The ice flow can be found by the direction the thin part is pointing.
What is the basket of eggs topography?
A collection of Drumlins called it due to the strange landscape it forms.
What is the outwash plain?
The extent of fine particles carried by the melt water.
What activities happen in upland areas?
- Farming (especially sheep farming as they’re hard wearing)
- Water management (either with hydroelectricity or with dams for water)
- Forestry (Coniferous trees are popular)
- Quarrying(easy access)
- Tourism
How is conflict created by the activities in upland areas?
- Water Management-Dams create loss of land and habitats makes people think that the environment should be preserved
- Forestry-Destroys habitats and reduces biodiversity
- Quarrying-Brings noise,heavy traffic,dust and can affect tourism
- Tourism-Conflict between wanting to create tourist activities and wanting to preserve the natural beauty
