Section 1 - Landscapes and Physical Processes Flashcards
What makes landscapes distinctive?
the features and landforms that makes the land different
What are uplands ?
a landscape that’s hilly/ mountainous
What are lowland ?
an area of land that is lower than the land around ot
Name the four types of distinctive landscapes
- upland
- lowland
- coastal landscape
- rivers
Name a positive and a negative of human activity on a physical landscape
positive : visitors, makes money investment in tourism creates jobs negative : visitor pressure affect the landscape More traffic footpath erosion litter house price increases
What is visitor pressure?
The increased impact on the landscapes, resources and services of an increased number of people because of tourism
Definition of a honeypot?
a place of special interest that attracts tourists
Name 2 strategies to manage landscapes
designated footpaths - protective sensitive areas
clearly marked car park - reduces parking on verges amd congestion
What is fluvial erosion ?
the type of erosion process that occurs in a river
Name the 4 types of erosion
hydraulic action
attrition
abrasion
solution
Explain abrasion
stones/ rocks are carried by the river hitting the river bed and banks, wearing them away
Explain Hydraulic Action
power of water as it smashes against banks forces water and air into the cracks and causing rocks to break
Explain Solution
the slightly acidic river water dissolves chalk and limestone rocks which are made from carbon carbonate
Explain Attrition
stones/ rocks are carried by the river water and collide together and are broken down, becoming smaller and rounder
Name the 4 types of transporation
- saltation
- solution
- suspension
- traction
Explain saltation
small stones and pebbles are bounced along the river bed.
Explain solution
minerals are dissolved into the water. This is a chemical change affecting rocks like chalk and limestone.
Explain Suspension
fine, light material is held up and carried with the river’s flow.
Explain Traction
large boulders and rocks are rolled along the river bed.
Give the definition of erosion and transportation
erosion : the wearing away of land
Transportation : the movement of material by the flow of water
Give the def of a meander
a bend in the river formed by lateral (sideways) erosion
Give the def of deposition
the dropping of material carried by the river
When does a river deposit materials?
when the speed of flow is too slow for it to carry the load
When is a river’s flow too slow, causing deposition? (3)
- Lack of rainfall, so less water moving in the river
- on the inside of a meander because the majority of water is on the outside of the bend.Therefore, the water on inside of the bend is moving slowly and cannot transport load.
- at the mouth of the river, where the river water flow against the direction of the sea.
Name 5 river landforms
- meanders
- V-shaped valley
- waterfalls
- gorges
- floodplains
Where are V-shaped valleys found in a river
V-shaped valley are found in the upper courses of a river valley, where the river is usually small and land is steep
Name features that make a V-shaped valley
- interlocking spurs
- vertical erosion (lateral) which create the v shape
Definition of interlocking spurs
hard, resistant rock that the river cannot easily erode and therefore the river goes around them
Name the two ways waterfalls can be formed
- glacial erosion
- differential erosion
Explain glacial erosion
where waterfalls have formed due to erosive power of a glacier during the ice age. Glaciers carve steep valleys into the landscape, often hanging above one another. Once the glacier melted, water drains from the smaller valleys and falls into the larger ones.
What is differential erosion ?
where waterfalls are formed due to a change in rock (hard and soft), which leads to the river bed eroding at different rates.
Name the 4 steps of differential erosion which causes a waterfall to be formes
- river bed crosses on to soft rock from hard rock it is eroded by hydraulic action and abrasion at a faster rate and creates a step
- water ‘falls’ hydraulic action continues to erode the rock underneath the hard rock as it splashes against.
- soft rock is further eroded, the overhang becomes too heavy and collapses, causing the position of the waterfall to retreat upstream.
- plunge pool is created underneath the waterfall due to the force of the water hitting the river bed and the abrasion caused by the rocks from the overhang being moved by the water
What’s a V-shaped valley ?
a narrow valley with steep sloping sides found in the river’s upper course
What’s the definition of a waterfall?
water falling from a higher level to a lower level due to a change in rock structure or as a result of glacial erosion.
What’s the definition of a gorge ?
a steep-sided narrow formed by a retreating waterfall
Whats a floodplain?
a flat piece of land on either side of a river forming the valley floor.
Whats the definition of a meander in a river?
a bend in the river formed by lateral (sideways) erosion.
What is vertical erosion and how does it affect the river ?
erosion of the river channel that deepens rather than widens the river.
What is a plunge pool?
a deepened part of the river bed at the base of the waterfall caused by the impact of falling water.
What is weathering?
the breakdown of rocks in place by elements of the weather.
Name 2 examples of weathering which affects the rocks
1) freeze-thaw
2) carbonation
What is freeze-thaw
the breakdown of rocks due to water entering the cracks and repeatedly freezing and thawing (melt).This is repeated until the rock falls off
What is carbonation ?
where chemicals in rainwater react in rocks which causes the cracks to get bigger
Name the 2 examples of mass movement.
rockfall
landslide
What happens after rock has been eroded from the upper part of a cliff?
the material moves down towards the beach resulting in mass movement
What is mass movement?
when soil, rock or stones move down a slope.
What is sediment ?
The material carried by the sea.
What is longshore drift ?
The process by which sediment is moved along the coastline.
What happens to the eroded material when falls into the sea?
Transported by the waves and currents along the coastline by longshore drift
What is a headland ?
An area of land that juts into the sea
How are headlands formed ?
Formed due to harder more resistant rock beings eroded more slowly
What is a bay?
A recessed area of coastline often found between two headland
How is a bay formed?
Formed between headlands due to softer less resistant rock which erodes more quickly.
How is a wave-cut platform formed?
Formed when a cliff face is eroded by the sea
What is a wave-cut platform?
A coastal landform made of a rocky shelf in front of a cliff
Name the 3 steps about how a wave-cut platform ?
1) waves hit the base of the cliff, hydraulic action and abrasion cut a wave-cut notch.
2) erosion continues at every high tide, the wave-cut notch will eventually make the cliff unstable and make it collapse
3) the material from the cliff will be moved by the sea, and in doing so abrasion will smooth the surface of the wave-cut platform left behind.
Where do arches and stacks form?
Form in headlands made from rock which is relatively resistant to erosion.
Describe the process of how stacks, stumps etc are created
Stacks and stumps are formed when the sea hits the rocks and hydraulic action and abrasion occurs which pushes the air into the cracks, and causes the rock to crumble on the headland. This then causes a crack which eventually turns into a arch.Then the arch separate and becomes a stack, then a stump develops when the stack collapses
What is a wave-cut notch?
A slit with overhanging rocks that has been cut into the bottom of a cliff by wave action
What is a stack ?
a column of rock
How/ when are beaches and spits formed ?
Formed when the swash is stronger than the backwash and deposition occurs.
What is swash?
The movement of water up the beach as a wave breaks
What is backwash?
The flow of water back into the sea after a wave has broke on to the shore
What is a beach ?
A build-up if sand, shingle and pebbles deposited by the waves.
What creates a spit?
Check book
What is a spit?
Check book
What is a rock pool?
A pool of seawater between shoreline rocks
What process enlarges rock pools?
Abrasion at high tide as small rocks hit inside of the rock pool
What factors affect the rates of landform change in river and coastal landscapes?
Geology, climate and human activity.
What is an arch ?
A natural opening in the cliff where the sea is able to flow through
What is a stack?
A vertical pillar of rock left behind after the collapse of an arch
When are beaches and spits formed?
When the swash is stronger than the backwash and desposition occurs
Where/ when does longshore drift transport beach material?
Where the coast changes direction.
What happens when longshore drift transports beach material?
This creates a new strip of land which sticks out into the sea and remains attached to the land at one end which is called a spit.
What is a spit?
A sand or shingle beach that is joined to the land but sticks outwards into the sea in the direction of the prevailing wind
What is swash?
The movement of water up the beach as a wave breaks
What is backwash?
The flow of water back into the sea after a wave has broken onto the shore
Name a case study where a spit/ beach is
Spurn Point at the Holderness coastline
What factors affect the rates of landform change in river and coastal landscapes?
Geology
Climate
Human Activity
What is geology and how does it affect the rate of landform erosion?
The type of rock that is being eroded and the way in which the rocks are laid down/
What is a concordant coastline?
where layers of different rock types run parallel to the coastline.
What is a discordant coastline?
rocks are formed at right angles to the sea and so erosion rates vary along the coastline depending on the rock type
How do prevailing winds affect the rate of erosion?
the prevailing wind affects the angle at which the waves break on to the coastline, and therefore the direction of erosion and transportation.
How does rainfall affect the rate of erosion in rivers?
There will be more water flowing in the river which increases the erosion rate.
How could extreme weather events affect the rate of erosion?
the more severe the storm is the more destructive the waves.
How can the speed of water moving through a drainage basin change? Name 3 ways
- The type and quantity of rainfall - rainfall moves more quickly down a drainage basin in heavy storms than in a light drizzle. So less infiltration and more surface runoff occurs
- The type and quantity of vegetation cover - more/less interception causing a delay for the water into the drainage basin
- The size and shape of the drainage basin - round drainage basins lead to a faster movement of water into the river than elongated ones. Larger basins have larger discharge as they drain from a larger surface area of land
- The steepness of slopes - steeper slopes means greater runoff and less infiltration
- The geology and soil type within the drainage basin - impermeable soil or rocks leads to less infiltration or groundwater flow and more surface runoff.
What is a drainage basin ?
An area of land drained by a river and its tributaries
What is a store?
A place where water is stationary within the water cycle
What is interception ?
When rainfall does not reach the ground as it is blocked by trees, buildings.
What is infiltration ?
The movement of water into the soil
What is throughflow?
The flow of water through the soil
What is overland flow?
The flow of water across the ground surface
What is groundwater flow?
The flow of water through rocks
What is transpiration?
Water given off by plants
What are the 4 main reasons the UK floods?
Vegetation
Geology
Climate
Urbanisation
Why does vegetation affect how the UK floods?
- different types of vegetation intercept different amounts of water which influence how fast the water moves through the drainage basin to reach river.
- removal of vegetation, if trees are removed water will reach river faster
Why does climate affect how the UK floods?
increasing the amount of rainfall
seasonal rainfall ; continuous rainfall causes the ground to become saturated, leading to more overland flow and higher river levels
storm event: a heavy storm tings a high volume of rainfall in a short period which causes a sudden rise in river levels
Why does geology affect how the UK floods?
porous rocks have large spaces within the rock which allows water to pass through.Reduces flood risk due to increased groundwater flow.
impermeable rocks have few spaces for water to pass through, creating more overland flow and higher flood risk
Why does urbanisation affect how the UK floods?
expansion of towns/ cities leads to the ground being covered with impermeable surfaces, which reduces amount of water that is infiltrated. Causing more overland flow and increases chance of flooding
What is a hydrograph?
A line graph used to display the discharge of a river over a period of time
Name the 4 stages of a hydrograph
1 - channel precipitation
2 - overland flow
3 - throughflow
4 - groundwater flow
What is the lag time in a hydrograph?
the time between the peak rainfall and peak discharge in a river
What is the rising limb in a hydrograph?
the part of a hydrograph where there discharge of a river is increasing after a rainfall event
What does a hydrograph look like for the factor of urbanisation
decreases lag time, steep rising limb
How does porous impact the data on a hydrograph e.g lag time, rising limb?
increases lag time, gentle rising limb, lowe peak
Whats the problem with hard engineering strategies?
Tend to be expensive, short-term options. They may also have a high impact on the landscape or environment and be unsustainable.
Name 3 examples of hard engineering strategies?
- sea wall
- groynes
- rock armour / barrier barriers
What’s good about soft engineering strategies?
Often less expensive than hard engineering options. They are usually more long-term and sustainable, with less impact on the environment.
What are the 2 main types of soft engineering ?
- Beach management
- Managed retreat
What is beach management?
This replaces beach or cliff material that has been removed by erosion or longshore drift.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of beach management?
+ is that beaches are a natural defence against erosion and coastal flooding. Beaches also attract tourists.
- It is a relatively inexpensive option but requires constant maintenance to replace the beach material as it is washed away.
What is managed retreat?
Areas of the coast are allowed to erode and flood naturally. Usually this will be areas considered to be of low value
What are the advantages and disadvantages of managed retreat?
+ it encourages the development of beaches (a natural defence) and salt marshes (important for the environment) and cost is low.
- Managed retreat is a cheap option, but people will need to be compensated for loss of buildings and farmland.
