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Earth Science > WED and Water Cycle > Flashcards

WED and Water Cycle Flashcards

1
Q

What is weathering?

A

The chemical and physical breakdown of rocks at or near the Earth’s surface

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2
Q

What is Physical Weathering?

A

Breakdown of rock into smaller pieces WITHOUT chemical change

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3
Q

What can Physical Weathering occur from?

A

Frost Action
Abrasion
Plant/Animal Action

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4
Q

What is Frost Action?

A

Water seeps into cracks. Water expands and freezes and makes the crack larger. Over time alternating freezing and melting will cause the rocks to crumble.

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5
Q

What is Abrasion?

A

Particles wear down from bumping/rubbing against each other.
- Become rounded and decrease in size

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6
Q

What is Chemical Weathering?

A

Breakdown of rock through a CHANGE in mineral or chemical composition.
TYPES:
- Oxidation
- Hydration
- Carbonation

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7
Q

`What is Erosion?

A

The TRANSPORT of particles!

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8
Q

What are the Agents of Erosion?

A

WATER:
- Abrasions
- Meanders
- “V” Shaped Valley
WIND:
- Abrasion
- “Sculptures”
ICE
- Striations
- Plucking
- “U” Shaped Valley
GRAVITY
- Creep
- Slump
- Landslides

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9
Q

WATER Erosion Explanation…

A

Meander
- turns or bends in a stream
- fast in the middle; slow on the outside
- inside of bend = deposition(slow)
- outside of bend = erosion(fast)

Abrasion
- particles wear down from bumping/rubbing against each other

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10
Q

WIND Erosion Explanation…

A

“Sculptures”
- big rocks/shapes typically seen in a sandy area

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11
Q

ICE Erosion Explanation…

A

Striations
- Glaciers pick up sediment; it carries grooves into bedrock
- horizontal lines

Plucking
- cracks in the glacier will grow and continue to form with each other; over time a rock/boulder breaks off

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12
Q

GRAVITY Erosion Explanation…

A

Creep
- things, usually trees or lampposts or whatever, that are vertical have a curve in them

Slump
- the land “slumps”; like when you slump in a chair

Landslides
- massive rocks falling down

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13
Q

What is Deposition?

A

Sediments being dropped off!

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14
Q

What are the Depositional Features?

A

WATER
- Horizontal Sorting
- Delta
- Alluvial Fan
WIND
- Sand Dunes
ICE
- Moraine
- Drumlin
- Glacial Erratic
GRAVITY
- Unsorted Sediment
- Vertical Sorting

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15
Q

WATER Deposition Explanation…

A

SORTED/LAYERED/ROUNDED
Delta
- sediment deposited at mouth of river
- triangle shaped feature forms at mouth (flat land to water)

Alluvial Fan
- triangle shape feature on land (butt crack mountain to water)

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16
Q

WIND Deposition Explanation…

A

SORTED/LAYERED/ROUNDED
Sand Dunes
- the side that appears steeper is the opposite way the wind blows

17
Q

ICE Deposition Explanation…

A

UNSORTED/UNLAYERED/ANGLED
Moraine
- material left behind from a moving glacier

Drumlin
- tear shaped hill

Glacial Erratic
- huge boulders that were dropped off in the middle of nowhere

18
Q

GRAVITY Deposition Explanation…

A

UNSORTED/UNLAYERED/ANGLED
Unsorted Sediment
- big and small sediment

19
Q

What are the factors effecting Deposition?

A

Size
- big sink fast, small sink slow
Shape
- round sink fast, flat sink slow
Density
- big density fast, small density slow

20
Q

First step of the Water Cycle?
(Hint: two ways this can happen)

A

Evaporation
- comes from water
Transpiration
- comes from plants

21
Q

Second step of the Water Cycle?

A

Condensation
- evaporated water condenses and forms a cloud

22
Q

Third step of the Water Cycle?

A

Precipitation
- water in the cloud gets heavy and falls to the ground; any form

23
Q

Fourth step of the Water Cycle?
(Hint: two different ways)

A

Run-off
- when the ground is saturated, the water flows off
Infiltration
- ability for water to seep into the ground

24
Q

What is the water table?

A

The level between the Zone of Saturation and the Zone of Aeration

25
Q

What is the Zone of Saturation?

A
  • below the water table
  • all filled with water
26
Q

What is the Zone of Aeration?

A
  • above water table
  • below surface
  • where infiltration + capillarity occurs
27
Q

What is Porosity?

A

The percentage of open pore space between particles(sediment)
POROSITY WILL REMAIN THE SAME NO MATTER WHAT THE PARTICLE SIZE IS

28
Q

Porosity is determined by…

A

Shape
- the rounder the particles, the higher the porosity will be

Packing
- the more closely packed, the lower the porosity is

Sorting
- the more sorted(or same size), the higher the porosity will be

29
Q

What is Permeability?

A

The ability of rock material to allow water to pass through it
- the larger the particle size, the greater the permeability will be

30
Q

What is Capillarity?

A

The process of water adhering to rock particles in small spaces, resulting in an UPWARD movement of the water through rock sediment
- the smaller the particle size, the greater the capillarity will be

Earth Science (1 decks)

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