Snowdonia Flashcards
What is a corrie
AN armchair shaped hollow high on a mountain with a steep back and sidewalls.
After glaciation, the hollow may be filled by a small lake or tarn.
How does a pyramidal peak form
When three or more corries erode back so far that they produce aretes with a pyramidal peak in between.
What is a hanging valley
A smaller side valley left ‘hanging’ above the main u-shaped valley.
A waterfall can often be seen.
During glaciation, the smaller side valley contains less ice than the main glacial valley, which is why it is not as deeply eroded
What are truncated spurs
Rounded areas of land which have been cut off.
They are often rounded at the top but steep at the bottom.
They are formed when glaciers move through the main valley and cut off spurs.
What is a ribbon lake
A large, narrow lake occupying a u-shaped valley.
It forms in a hollow when a glacier has more deeply eroded less resistant rock or it may fill up a valley behind a wall of moraine across the valley
What is a misfit river
Rivers that meander through the flat, wide U-shaped floor.
They did not erode the valley, as they formed in the valley after glaciation had carved out the U-shaped valley.
Give an example of a corrie in Snowdonia
Cwm Idwal
Give an example of an arrete in Snowdonia
Crib Goch
Give an example of a pyramidal peak in Snowdonia
Snowdon
Give an example of a hanging valley in Snowdonia
Afon Berthen
Give an example of a misfit river in Snowdonia
Nanty Gwyrd
Why are most of the Corries North-East facing in Snowdonia
Likely to reflect the redistribution of snow into sheltered leeward hollows from the prevailing south-westerly winds
(and relative freedom from ablation on sheltered north-east-facing slopes)
Annalyse the orientation of worries in Snowdonia
Although corrie orientation in Snowdonia spans the full range of directions, there is a strong and significant tendency of them facing north-east
The variations in orientation may in part be explained by localised differences in geological structure
What can studying corrie orientation tell us
Factors controlling mountain glaciation (e.g. pre-glacial relief, geological structure, regional climate, etc.)
