Uk Glacial Landscapes Flashcards
How does the moving ice erode the landscape
Plucking and Abrasion
What is Abrasion
Bits of rock grind against the rock below the glacier, wearing it away
What is Plucking and when does it occur
Occurs when melt water at base, sides or back of glacier freezes onto the rock, as glacier moves forward it pulls pieces of rock out
How do Glaciers erode the landscape as they move?
- ice moves in circular motion
- freeze-thawing breaks bits of rock off the mountain face
- plucking bread bit of rock off the mountain face and makes the back wall steeper
- abrasion grinds and gouges the valley floor
What is Freeze-thaw Weathering
- Water gets into cracks in rocks
- Water freezes and expands, putting pressure on rock
- Ice thaws, releasing pressure
- If repeated bits of rock fall off
What happens if ice moves in circular motion
Erode hollows in the landscape and deepen them into bowl shapes
What is an Arête and how is it formed
- Narrow, steep-sided ridge
- Formed when 2 glaciers flow in parallel valleys
- Glaciers erode sides of valleys, sharpens ridge between them giving jagged profile
What is Pyramidal peak and how is formed
- Pointed mountain peak with at least 3 sides
* Formed when 3 or more back-to-back glaciers erode a mountain
What is Truncated Spurs and how are they formed
- Cliff-like edges on valley side
* Formed when ridges stick out into main valley are cut off as glacier moves past
What are Hanging Valleys and how are they formed
- Valleys
- Formed by smaller glaciers that flow into main glacier
- Glacial trough eroded deeply by larger glacier, glaciers melt valleys are left at higher level
What are Glacial Troughs and how are they formed?
- Steep-sided valleys with flat bottoms
* Change from V to U shaped valley as glacier eroded sides and bottom, making it wider & deeper
What are Ribbon lakes and how are they formed
- Long, thin lakes that form after a glacier retreats
* Form in hollows where softer rock was eroded more than surrounding hard rock
What are Corries and how are they formed
- Begin as hollows containing a small glacier
- Ice moves by rotational slip, erodes hollow into steep sided shape with lip at bottom
- Ice meets and leave small circular lake called a tarn
What is Transportation
Glaciers moving material (e.g. sand, clay, rocks) over large distances
What is Till
Unsorted mixture of material transported by glaciers
What is bulldozing
Ice pushes loose material in front of it