Geology Terms: Weathering, Erosion, Transport, Deposition, and Soil Formation, Quizzes of Environmental Science

Download Geology Terms: Weathering, Erosion, Transport, Deposition, and Soil Formation and more Quizzes Environmental Science in PDF only on Docsity! TERM 1 weathering DEFINITION 1 decomposition and disintegration of rocks and minerals at Earth's surface TERM 2 erosion DEFINITION 2 removal of weathered rocks by moving water, wind, ice or gravity TERM 3 Transport DEFINITION 3 movement of quartz grain by the stream TERM 4 Deposition DEFINITION 4 sediments, soil and rocks are added to a landform or land mass. TERM 5 Mechanical (physical) weathering DEFINITION 5 reduces solid rock to smaller fragments but does not alter the chemical composition of the rocks and minerals TERM 6 Frost wedging DEFINITION 6 water dislodges rocks from cliffs TERM 7 Talus slopes DEFINITION 7 talus cone created by frost wedging TERM 8 Chemical weathering DEFINITION 8 air and water chemically react with rock to alter its composition and mineral content TERM 9 Dissolution DEFINITION 9 process of going into solution TERM 10 Carbonation DEFINITION 10 process of rock minerals reacting with carbonic acid TERM 21 Flow (Creep, Debris flow) DEFINITION 21 individual particles move downslope independently of one another, not as a consolidated mass TERM 22 Slide (Slump, Rockslide) DEFINITION 22 material moves as discrete blocks TERM 23 Fall DEFINITION 23 materials fall freely in air TERM 24 Components of Hydrologic Cycle DEFINITION 24 atmosphere, precipitation, evaporation, ocean, runoff, ground water, lakes and rivers, ice caps and glaciers TERM 25 Distribution of water on Earth DEFINITION 25 97.5% oceans2.5% fresh water - 0.64% ground water, 1.8% ice caps and glaciers, 0.001% atmosphere, 0.01% rivers and lakes TERM 26 Importance of transport of water from oceans to continents via the atmosphere DEFINITION 26 The atmosphere cares 46 cubic km to the land every year, and back to ocean as runoff TERM 27 Rivers and Streams DEFINITION 27 logic water - flowingwater flowing in a channel TERM 28 Channel DEFINITION 28 the trough or groove through which a stream flows TERM 29 Watershed/ Drainage Basin DEFINITION 29 land area that contributes water to a river system TERM 30 Discharge/ Stream Flow DEFINITION 30 the amount of water flowing down a streamstream flow: cubic meter/ second= velocity (m/s) * cross-sectional area of stream channel in square meter TERM 31 Velocity - Gradient DEFINITION 31 measured using a cup type flow meter, can be influenced by gradientGradient: steepness of the stream TERM 32 Competence/ Capacity DEFINITION 32 Competence: measure of the largest particle it can carryCapacity: total amount of sediment it can carry past a point in a given amount of time TERM 33 Dissolved load/ Suspended load/ bed load DEFINITION 33 dissolved load: ions dissolved in watersuspended load: smaller particles suspended in water, e,g, clay and siltbed load: boulders and cobbles moved along the stream bed TERM 34 Ungraded/ graded stream profile DEFINITION 34 ungraded: many temporary bas levelsover time, the stream smoothes out the irregularities to develop a graded profile(zone of erosion, zone of deposition) TERM 35 Meanders DEFINITION 35 a winding course of rivereroded outside TERM 46 Karst Togography DEFINITION 46 sinkholes and cavernssinkhole collapse: erosion, groundwater withdrawal, surface loading TERM 47 Geyser DEFINITION 47 hot ground water flashes into vapor and the geyser erupts TERM 48 lake DEFINITION 48 large, inland body of standing water that occupies a depression in the land surface TERM 49 glacier DEFINITION 49 a massive, long-lasting, moving mass of compacted snow and ice TERM 50 glacial/ interglacial periods over Earth's geologic history DEFINITION 50 glacial cycles during the Pleistocene Ice Agepeak glacial, modern, peak interglacialalpine glacier, ice sheet TERM 51 Firn DEFINITION 51 snoaflake -> granular snow -> firn -> glacier icefirn: rounded ice grains formed form snow survives through one summer TERM 52 Movement - basal slip/ plastic flow DEFINITION 52 2 mechanisms of movement:1. basal slip: the entire glacier slides over the bedrock2. plastic flow: ice flows as a viscous fluid TERM 53 zone of accumulation DEFINITION 53 the region where more snow falls during the winter than melts during the summer TERM 54 zone of ablation DEFINITION 54 more snow melts during the summer than accumulates during the winter TERM 55 cirque DEFINITION 55 snow accumulates and a glacier begins to flow from the summit of a peak;glacial weathering + erosion form a small depression in the mountainsideEventually cirque carved in the side of the peak TERM 56 tarn DEFINITION 56 a small lake nestled at the base of the cirque when a glacier melts TERM 57 drift/till/stratified till DEFINITION 57 Drift: all rock or sediment transported and deposited by a glacierTill: deposited directly by a glacierstratified drift: first carried by a glacier and then transported and deposited by a stream TERM 58 moraine DEFINITION 58 mound or ridge of tillanyglacially formedaccumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris TERM 59 terminal/ end DEFINITION 59 end moraine forms at glacier marginridges of unconsolidated debris deposited at the snout or end of the glacier TERM 60 lateral DEFINITION 60 parallel ridges of debris deposited along the sides of a glacier TERM 71 Convection / mantle convection cells DEFINITION 71 The mantle and lithosphere circulate in huge elliptical cells that rise from the deepest mantle, then flow across the Earth's surface and then sink back to the mantle-core boundary TERM 72 Plate boundaries: divergent, convergent, transform DEFINITION 72 divergent: two plates separate. ocean-ocean: mid-oceanic ridge, sea-floor spreading, shallow earthquakes, rising magma, volcanoesor continent-continent, rift valley, continents torn apart, earthquakes, rising magma, volcanoes, East African rifttransform: rocks on opposite sides of the fracture slide horizontally past each other. ocean-ocean, major offset of mid-oceanic ridge axis, earthquakes, East pacific rise in south pacificcontinent-continent, small deformed mountain rages, earthquakes, san andreas faultconvergent: two plates come together. ocean-ocean, island arcs and ocean trenches, deep earthquakes, rising magma, Western Aleutians; ocean-continent, mountains and ocean trenches, subduction, deep early quakes, AndesContinent-continent, mountains, deep earthquakes, deformation of rocks, himalayas TERM 73 Continental rifting DEFINITION 73 East African Rift:3 plates pulling away from one another TERM 74 Subduction / subduction zone DEFINITION 74 at a convergent plate boundary, two lithospheric plates move toward each otherWhen two plates of different density converge, the denser one sinks into the mantle beneath the othersubduction zone is a long, narrow belt where a lithospheric plate is sinking into the mantle TERM 75 Relationship between deep sea trenches and subduction zones DEFINITION 75 subduction processes in oceanic-oceanic plate convergence result in trenches TERM 76 Types of convergent tectonic boundaries DEFINITION 76 1. between a plate carrying oceanic crust and another carrying continental crust -- oceanic trench2. ocean-ocean: mid-oceanic ridge3. continental contimental -- island arc TERM 77 Island arc DEFINITION 77 andesitic volcanoes, magma around subduction zonea chain of submatrian islands TERM 78 Plastic deformation DEFINITION 78 when its elastic limit is exceeded, a rock continues to deform like a putty, keeps the new shape when the form is released TERM 79 Fault DEFINITION 79 an elastically deformed rock may suddenly fracture and create a faultthe fractures releases the elastic energy and springs back to the original shape -- earthquake TERM 80 Earthquake DEFINITION 80 a sudden motion or trembling of the earth caused by an abrupt release of energy that is stored in the rocks TERM 81 Seismic waves DEFINITION 81 waves that travel through rockearthquakes produce seismic waves TERM 82 Focus / epicenter DEFINITION 82 the initial point where the abrupt movement creates an earthquakeepicenter: the point on the earth sure directly above the focus TERM 83 Body waves: P waves and S waves DEFINITION 83 body waves travel outward from the focus to hthe surfaceP: compression elastic wave that causes alternate compression and expansion of the rock, very fast: parallel to wave directionS: shear wave are secondary more slowly, up and down TERM 84 Surface waves DEFINITION 84 surface waves radiate from the epicenter salong he earth's surface TERM 85 Seismograph DEFINITION 85 records ground motion during an earthquake TERM 96 Volcano / vent / crater DEFINITION 96 volcano forms when lava is too viscous to spread out as a flood, it builds a hill or mountainvent located in a crater: a bowl-like depression in the summit of the volcano TERM 97 Shield volcano DEFINITION 97 fluid basaltic magma builds a gently sloping mountain TERM 98 Cinder cone DEFINITION 98 a small volcano composed of pyroclastic fragmentsforms when large amounts of gas accumulates TERM 99 Composite cone DEFINITION 99 alternating layers of lava and loose pyroclastic material. it's formed over a long period of time TERM 100 Caldera DEFINITION 100 Because so much material has erupted from the top of the magma chamber, the roof collapses to form a TERM 101 Orogeny DEFINITION 101 the process of natural mountain building, involves these processes:1. deposition, deformation, folding and thrust- faulting, metamorphism, granitic batholiths, volcanic activity, oceanic tranches TERM 102 Folds DEFINITION 102 5 types: syncline: fold arching downwardanticline: fold arching upwardsasymmetrical anticlineoverturned anticlineoverturned anticline TERM 103 Dome and basin DEFINITION 103 a circular anticline structure is a domea syncline is a basin TERM 104 Fault DEFINITION 104 A fault is a fracture along which rock on one side has moved relative to rock on the other side. TERM 105 Horsts and grabens DEFINITION 105 Horsts and grabens commonly form where tectonic forces stretch the crust over a broad area. TERM 106 Accretionary Prism (Zone of Deposition) DEFINITION 106 sediment eroded from the orogenic belt accumulates in the trench and is intensely deformed as the plates converge TERM 107 Igneous Arc DEFINITION 107 when the descending oceanic plate reaches about 100 kilometers depth, it begins to melt, magma invades the crust, creating batholiths and a volcanic mountain chainThis is the part of the belt of greatest deformation TERM 108 Foreland DEFINITION 108 metamorphism is mild but compression of the crust results in folding and thrust-faulting TERM 109 Craton DEFINITION 109 stable interior of the continent TERM 110 Forces that gave rise to the following mountain chains DEFINITION 110 Andes Himalayas Allutian islands Hawaiian islands