Rivers

Question 1

Factors that effect the amount of discharge

Answer 1

Rainfall - type and amount
Temperature - hot or cold
Previous weather - wet or dry 
Relief - steep or gentle
Rock type - permeable or impermeable 
Land use - rural or urban

Question 2

Velocity

Answer 2

Speed of the river measured in meters per second (m/s). Increases from the source to the mouth because the discharge increases meaning there’s less friction from the bed and banks. Water is able to flow faster even though the gradient becomes gentler.

Question 3

River erosion - hydraulic action

Answer 3

the sheer force of the flowing water on the bed and banks

Question 4

River erosion - abrasion

Answer 4

Stones carried by the river wear away the channel (sandpaper effect)

Question 5

River erosion - attrition

Answer 5

Stones collide, wearing them away, becoming smaller and rounder

Question 6

River erosion - corrosion

Answer 6

Slightly acidic river water dissolves rocks made of calcium carbonate

Question 7

Transportation - traction

Answer 7

Stones rolled long the river bed by the force of flowing water

Question 8

Transportation - saltation

Answer 8

Stones bounce along the river bed

Question 9

Transportation - suspension

Answer 9

Partials of slit and coat float in the water, making the river look cloudy

Question 10

Transportation - solution

Answer 10

Minerals dissolve in the water

Question 11

Upper course

Answer 11

Steep v-shaped valley and bedload is angular boulders and cobbles

Question 12

Middle course

Answer 12

Erodes laterally and has gently sloping valleys. Bedload is round cobbles and pebbles

Question 13

Lower course

Answer 13

Deposits to form a wide valley with a flat valley floor. Bedload is sand, slit and clay

Question 14

Watershed

Answer 14

An area of higher land separating two drainage basins

Question 15

Source

Answer 15

Where the river begins

Question 16

Tributary

Answer 16

Smaller river joining a larger river

Question 17

Confluence

Answer 17

The place where two rivers join

Question 18

Mouth

Answer 18

The place where the river enters a lake or the sea

Question 19

Flood plains

Answer 19

An area of flat land formed on wither side of a river.

Formed in the lower course of the river due to combination of erosion and depositation

Question 20

Levees

Answer 20

Raised banks of deposited sediment formed either sided of a river channel.
Formed during many years of river flooding, when the largest material is deposited next to the river

Question 21

Discharge

Answer 21

The amount of water in a river measured in cubic meters per second (m3/sec). It increases from the source to mouth. As this increases so does the width and depth.

Question 22

Flood management - hard engineering

Answer 22

The use of structures and machinery to control natural processes (e.g dams and creating a reservoir)

Question 23

Flood management - soft engineering

Answer 23

Working with the environment to modify and/or prepare for natural processes (e.g. floodplain zoning and flood warnings)