Lecture 17: Weathering and Mass Movements Flashcards
______ are processes that operate on or near the Earths surface (e.g. glaciation, coastal waves, river erosion)
Exogenic
What is the energy that drives exogenic processes?
solar radiation
______ are processes that operate in the subsurface but can influence the Earth surface (e.g. volcanic and seismic activity).
Endogeneic
What is the energy that drives endogenic processes?
internal geothermal heat from radioactive decay elements, drives plate tectonics
_____ is the set processes that act to break down materials (bedrock) at the surface and in the shallow subsurface.
Weathering
_______ is produced from the partial fracturingand decomposition of bedrock.
Regolith
What are the 3 types of weathering processes?
Physical, chemical, biological (organic)
What are the three types of physical weathering processes?
Freeze-thaw (freezing of water in pores and openings in sediment and rock causes the formation of ice)
Salt crystal growth (Evaporation of highly saline water from pores and openings in rock or sediment can produce a supersaturated solution, from which salt crystals precipitate)
Pressure release (Expansion of rock that results from the removal of overlying sediments and rock (e.g. by erosion) or the removal of an overlying glacial ice mass)
What are the 4 types of chemical weathering processes?
Solution, Carbonation, Hydrolysis, Oxidation
True or False: in chemical reactions, several chemical reactions can occur, reactions are more effective at high temperature, low pH, and under moist conditions, materials that are produced are more stable than the original substances
True
True or False: Physical weathering occurs in places where there is little soil and few plants to grow.
True
_____ is a slow to very rapid downslope motion of soil, sediment and or rock from high to low elevation.
Mass movement
What are the 3 functions of slope stability?
(i) the materials that comprise the slope,
(ii) the gradient of the slope, and
(iii) the moisture content of the materials.
What are 5 types of mass movements?
Falls Topples Slides Flows Complex
_____ motion is achieved by internal shearing within the flowing mass (similar to fluidflow).
Flow