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Physical Geography > Hydromorphology and Glaciation > Flashcards

Hydromorphology and Glaciation Flashcards

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1
Q

What is an Aeolian process?

A

Eolian processes include erosion, transportation, and deposition accomplished by wind.

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2
Q

The ability of wind to move materials is less than that of water or ice. Why?

A

Because air is much less dense than water or ice.

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3
Q

True or False: Like all agents of erosion, wind erodes, transports and deposits.

A

True

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4
Q

Is wind an affective agent of erosion?

A

Wind is, like water, a fluid, but being less dense, is a less effective agent of erosion.

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5
Q

Which is more effective at erosion, wind or water? Why?

A

Water, because it is dense.

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6
Q

Among large-, intermediate-, and small-sized grains, which one moves most easily by wind?

A

Intermediate particles are easy to move, because they can bounce along.

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7
Q

Why are small particles difficult to erode?

A

Small particles are difficult to move because they have a mutual cohesiveness and they present a smooth surface to the wind.

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8
Q

What are the three movements of particles by wind?

A

Saltation
Suspension
Creep

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9
Q

Define Saltation:

A

bouncing, skipping, some impact when they land can act as erosive work

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10
Q

Define Suspension:

A

smallest of particles remain in suspension

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11
Q

Define Creep:

A

near the surface, traction and sliding along the ground

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12
Q

About ______ of wind transport occurs via saltation, which is very important to eolian transport.

A

80%

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13
Q

How is saltation accomplished?

A

Aerodynamic lift

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14
Q

what are some important factors of Saltation?

A

Bouncing and IMPACT
Inertia

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15
Q

What are the two principal wind-erosion processes?

A

Deflation
Abraison

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16
Q

Define Deflation:

A

Removing and lifting individual loose particles from the ground surface. Deflating the landscape.

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17
Q

Define Abrasion:

A

grinding rock surface by the “sandblasting” action of particles captured in the air.

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18
Q

What does the rate of abrasion depend on?

A

hardness of surface rocks
wind speed
wind constancy

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19
Q

What are Ventifacts?

A

Artifacts of the Wind

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20
Q

What are characteristics of ventifacts?

A

Pitted, fluted, or polished from eolian erosion

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21
Q

What are Yardangs?

A

Yardangs refer to large scale streamlining rock structures (formed by deflation and abrasion) that are aligned parallel to the most effective (or dominant) wind direction.

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22
Q

How high to Yardangs get?

A

Kilometres in length and many meters in height

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23
Q

What are Gobi?

A

Desert Pavemnts in China

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24
Q

What are the two theories of Gobi?

A

Deflation vs. Moisture

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25
Q

True or False: Only 10% of desert areas are covered with sand.

A

True

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26
Q

What area do desert pavements predominate across?

A

Subtropical Landscapes

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27
Q

Define Dunes:

A

Sand grains generally are deposited as transient ridges or hills

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28
Q

What is an extensive area of dunes called in North Africa?

A

Erg or Sand Sea

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29
Q

Provide a Dune profile:

A

Wind erosion and deposition work together to build a dunes characteristic profile. A dune grows as wind-borne particles accumulate on the gentler, windward slope, then cascade down the steep slip face of the leeward slope

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30
Q

What is the angle of repose in reference to a dune?

A

The off balance forces holding materials in place, is usually 30-34°

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31
Q

True or False: The dune, over time, migrates, this is where deposition comes into play.

A

True

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32
Q

What are the three types of dune formation?

A

Crescentic
Linear
Star

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33
Q

________________:
-Solitary, crescent shaped dune
-Horns point downwind
-Sand Supply limited
-Strong wind

A

Barchan Dune

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34
Q

_________________:
-crescentic dune
-Open horns face upwind (opposite to barchan shape)
-Vegetation anchors certain sections (arms) of the dune in place, while others migrate.

A

Parabolic Dune

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35
Q

__________________:
-Crescentic dune
-Large Fields of dunes, resemble ripples on a large scale
-Occurs in areas with abundant supply of sand and constant wind direction

A

Transverse Dune

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36
Q

True or False: Barchan dunes grow together into a transverse formation if sand supply increases overtime.

A

True

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37
Q

What are the three types of Crescentic Dunes?

A

Barchan
Parabolic
Transverse

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38
Q

____________________: -
Linear dunes, long straight ridges, approximately parallel with the prevailing wind direction.
-Moderate to low sand supply, strong prevailing winds which change direction slightly and converge.

A

Longitudinal Dunes

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39
Q

________________:
-The largest dune formations (can approach 200m in height)
-Result from shifting wind direction and abundant sand supply, opposite of longitudinal dunes.

A

Star Dunes

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40
Q

What do Dome Dunes form domes?

A

Vegetation might result in a collection of sand, resulting in a dome shape dune.

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41
Q

What are the three environmental conditions which influence Dune formation?

A

Wind
Vegetation
Sand

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42
Q

_____________ Dunes often have more sand.

A

Transverse

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43
Q

________________ dunes result from more wind.

A

Longitudinal

44
Q

There are ____________ dunes where vegetation is found.

A

no

45
Q

True or False: About 77% of Earth’s freshwater is frozen.

A

True

46
Q

Define a Glacier:

A

a large mass of ice resting on land or floating as an ice shelf in the sea adjacent to land.

47
Q

How do glaciers move?

A

slowly, in stream like patterns

48
Q

What are glacial and interglacial periods?

A

Periods of time when the earth is warming vs. cooling, usually around 20,000 year differences

49
Q

What is Glacial Lake Agassiz?

A

The largest of the ice marginal lakes, Glacial Lake Agassiz stretched from Saskatchewan to Ontario into south Dakota and Minnesota.
-Stratigraphic evidence of glacial lake Agassiz is found over an area of approximately 950,000 km2, though the lake never covered this entire area at any one time.

50
Q

What is a Glacial Spillway? Example?

A

valleys that are much wider than the river that currently occupies them
-ex. Qu’Appelle Valley in Saskatchewan

51
Q

How many steps are there to glacial formation?

A

3

52
Q

What is the first step of glacial formation?

A

Snow survives the summer. Note: glaciers occur in areas with permanent snow cover

53
Q

What is the 2nd step of glacial formation?

A

-In the following winter, the old snow is slowly pressured and re-crystallized into firn.

54
Q

What is Firn?

A

Firn is at an intermediate stage between snow and glacial ice. It has a compact and granular texture.

55
Q

What is the third step of glacial formation?

A

After many years pass, dense glacial ice is formed in an analogous process to the metamorphic process: snow and firn (sediments) are pressured and re-crystallized into a dense glacial ice (metamorphic rock).

56
Q

What are the two types of Glaciers?

A

Apline
Continental

57
Q

Define an Alpine Glacier:

A

a glacier in a mountain range is an alpine glacier or mountain glacier.

58
Q

Where are Alpine Glaciers mostly found?

A

Alpine comes from the Alps of central Europe, where many mountain glaciers are found.

59
Q

What are the four common subtypes of Alpine Glaciers?

A

Cirque
Valley
Piedmont
Tidewater

60
Q

___________ glacier: glacier in a bowl-shaped recess at the head of a valley

A

Cirque

61
Q

_______________ glacier: in steep-walled valleys

A

Valley

62
Q

_____________ glacier: at the base of a mountain range

A

Piedmont

63
Q

_____________ glacier: a glacier ends in a body of water influenced by tides.

A

Tidewater

64
Q

Define a Continental Glacier:

A

A continuous mass of ice with a much larger scale than individual alpine glaciers are a continental glacier.

65
Q

What is an ice sheet?

A

An ice sheet is a mass of glacier ice that covers an area of more than 50,000 km2.

66
Q

What are the two major ice sheets?

A

Antarctic
Greenland

67
Q

What are the two subtypes of Continuous ice over mountain locations?

A

Ice Caps
Ice Fields

68
Q

What is an ice cap?

A

An ice cap is roughly circular and covers an area of less than 50,000 km2

69
Q

What is an ice field?

A

An ice field is in an elongated pattern (ice field’s area usually is less than that of an ice cap).

70
Q

Give an example of an ice field:

A

The Patagonian ice field in the Andean mountains is the largest in the world 90kms wide, and 360kms long

71
Q

What is Glacial Mass Balance?

A

A glacier in disequilibrium will either advance or retreat
-A glacier in equilibrium has equivalent rates of accumulation (snow) and ablation (melt/loss).

72
Q

What will a glacier with positive net mass balance do?

A

Advance (more accumulation than ablation)

73
Q

What will a glacier with negative net mass balance do?

A

Retreat (more ablation than accumulation)

74
Q

True or False: Regardless of whether the glacier is advancing or retreating, it flows downslope under its own weight.

A

True

75
Q

What is glacial movement driven by?

A

Deformation
Basal Slip

76
Q

______________ presence in the basal layer can lubricate the glacial movement.

A

Water

77
Q

How does Dendrochronology help estimate glacial advance/retreat?

A

By dating dead trees that were killed (run over) during advance… and by ageing living trees growing on depositional landforms left behind by glaciers.

78
Q

What are some agents of erosion from glaciers?

A

running water
ocean currents
moving air

79
Q

Define Glacier erosion:

A

-The process by which a glacier erodes the landscape is like a large excavation project, with the glacier hauling debris from one site to another for deposition.
-The passing glacier mechanically picks up rock material and carries it away in a process known as glacial plucking.
-Debris is carried on its surface and is also transported internally, or englacially, embedded within the glacier itself.

80
Q

What does Englacially mean?

A

Embedded within the glacier

81
Q

What happens to the the frozen basal layers of a glacier during erosion? What is that process called?

A

the glacier enable the ice mass to scour the landscape like sandpaper as it moves.
-Abrasion

82
Q

What does Abrasion do in glacier erosion?

A

produces a smooth surface on exposed rock, which shines with glacial polish when the glacier retreats.

83
Q

A landscape feature produced by both glacial plucking and abrasion is a _______________.

A

Roche moutonnée

84
Q

What is a Roche moutonnée?

A

This landform has a characteristic gently sloping upstream side (stoss side) that is polished smoothly by glacial action and an abrupt and steep downstream side (lee side) where the glacier plucked rock pieces.

85
Q

Explain the process of Glacial Plucking:

A

Caused by water freezing and thawing in joints, causing cracking and separation. It is also caused by water freezing around a rock and entraining it in the flow of ice.

86
Q

What is an example of glacial plucking?

A

Finger Lakes, NY

87
Q

What are Glacial Valleys?

A

if this landscape becomes cold enough, to support the growth of glaciers, ice can fill in preexisting V-shaped valleys.

88
Q

What happens to Glacial Valleys overtime?

A

Then over time it becomes a u-shaped valley. It can shape many different landscape features.

89
Q

What do Glacial Drifts refer to?

A

Glacial drift refers to all glacial deposits, both unsorted and sorted.

90
Q

What is a sorted glacial drift AKA?

A

Stratified Drift

91
Q

_____________: the direct ice deposits left as unstratified and unsorted debris.

A

Till

92
Q

What happens as a glacier flows to a lower elevation?

A

a wide range of rock fragments becomes entrained on its surface or embedded within its mass or in its base

93
Q

What do retreating glaciers do?

A

They can leave behind large rocks

94
Q

Explain Glacial Till:

A

glaciers carrying larger particles, sediments, boulders and grinding those things along the base, as its sliding down a glacial valley, we see evidence of resistant rock being quite heavy.

95
Q

What are Moraines?

A

The deposition of glacial sediments

96
Q

________________: forms along each side of a glacier.

A

Lateral Moraine

97
Q

_________________: If two glaciers with lateral moraines join

A

Medial Moraine

98
Q

___________________: A depositional till that is generally spread across a surface

A

Ground Moraine/Till Plain

99
Q

What are Ground Moraines/Till Plain good at?

A

Covering up former landscape features.

100
Q

_________________: Eroded debris that is dropped at the glacier’s farthest extent.

A

Terminal moraine

101
Q

What is a Kettle Lake?

A

An isolated block of ice remains in a ground moraine or an outwash plain after a glacier retreated.

102
Q

What happens when ice begins to melt in a Kettle Lake?

A

material continues to accumulate around the melting ice block. When the block finally melts, it leaves behind a steep sided hole.

103
Q

How did Kettle Lakes get their name?

A

During this period, material continues to accumulate around the melting ice block. When the block finally melts, it leaves behind a steep sided hole.
-Such a feature then frequently fills with water, called a kettle.

104
Q

What is topography of Knot and Kettles?

A

retreat of large continental glaciers, barriers by water, melt and leave the depression in the landscape.

105
Q

What is an Esker?

A

Esker is a sinuously curving, narrow ridge of coarse sand and gravel.

106
Q

Where do Eskers form?

A

It forms along the channel of a meltwater stream that flows beneath a glacier, in an ice tunnel, or between ice walls.

107
Q

Esker; As a glacier retreats, the steep-sided esker is left behind in a pattern __________ to the path of glacier.

A

parallel

Physical Geography (15 decks)

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