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IES Exam 4
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Denundation | Wearing of plant material and soil leading to reduction in relief and in elevation by the following processes |
| Weathering | Occurs via physical and chemical processes along zones of weakness (crack, dimple) in rocks Destroys cohesion of lithosphere |
| Mass Wasting | Short distance downslope movement of weathered rock and soil |
| Erosion | Long distance transport of material via wind and water |
| Weathering Agents | Atmospheric, Physical, and Biological |
| Atmospheric Weathering | Oxygen, carbon dioxide (gaseous and liquid forms) water (gas, solid and liquid), and resulting acids involved in chemical reactions |
| Physical Weathering | Temperature changes due to climate (temp and moisture) or heat from fire or changes in strain due to removal of overlying rocks |
| Biological Weathering | Plants, microbes (bacteria and fungi), animal decomposition |
| Mechanical/Physical Weathering Processes | Frost wedging, salt wedging, thermal expansion, exfoliation, abrasion or scouring |
| Exfoliation | Peeling of concentric layers of rock "onion" |
| Thermal Expansion | Heating and cooling can cause cracking due to expansion Uncommon, happens in forest fires |
| Chemical Weathering Processes | More effective when high surface area, high moisture (humid > arid), high temperature |
| Solution Processes | Water is a fundamental agent Solvent for rock forming chemicals Underground water is weak solution of carbonic acid |
| Dissolution | Removal of bedrock through chemical action of water |
| Percipitation | Coming out of solution, solidifying or crystalizing |
| Oxidation/Reduction | Oxidation = Loss of electrons Reduction = Gain of electrons |
| Hydrolysis | Releases acidity from disassociation not water Dissolution of minerals from solid into dissolved form Silicates (most abundant mineral) mostly weathered this way |
| Carbonation | Releases acidity Reaction important in dissolving limestone Acidity releases in soil due to plants and microbial release of CO2 |
| Zones of Contact | Where weathering occurs Exterior surface and interior of rocks Weathering facilitated by increasing surface area |
| Entryways for Weathering Agents | Microscopic openings, joints, faults, lava vesicles, solution cavities, Karst topography |
| Lava Vesicles | Holes that develop igneous rocks during cooling Formed by gas bubbles unable to escape during cooling Leads to more surface area |
| Solution Cavities | Holes that develop mostly in sedimentary rocks, especially in calcareous limestone Formed by chemical dissolution reactions |
| Karst Topography | Example of landscape shaped by chemical weathering in soluble sedimentary rock Characterized by dissolution of rocks underground by groundwater, which destabilizes landscape surface |
| Joints | Cracks that develop in lithosphere, no vertical displacement (fault) Result of contractive stress |
| Faults | Breaks in bedrock due to lithosphere displacement Not as numerous as joints, normally individual Large scale |
| Sinkholes | Caused by Karst topography |
| Mogotes | Karst towers Form in highly weathered, humid climates |
| Cenotes | Important access to groundwater for Mayan civilizations in Yucatan, Mexico Holes in limestone |
| Biological Weathering | Biological organisms involved in chemical and physical weathering |
| Bio Physical Weathering | Plant roots, burrowing animals, lichens, etc. |
| Lichens | Fungus Very effective weathering agents on recently exposed rock First to start eating at former glaciated landscape |
| Fossorial Animals | Earthworms, ants, moles, voles, shrews, prairie dogs, etc. Move earth and make holes, move rocks |
| Chemical Bio Weathering | Release of CO2 and organic acids produced from bio activity (respiration, decomposition), from animals and plants |
| Hillslope Processes | Mass wasting Important cuz they share landscapes an can also be natural hazards |
| Types of Mass Wasting | Soil Creep, Soilfluction, Soil Slump, Rockfall, Landslide, Mudflow and Earthflows |
| Soil Creep | Slow, short downslope movement of soil, affected by angle of slope, plant cover, moisture, burrowing animals Over time contributes to decreasing slope angles and lowering hilltops Constant |
| Soilfluction | Soil flowage. Typical in tundra landscape Near surface soil above permafrost One fast movement |
| Soil Slump | Larger volume of soil moves downslope Often related to intense rain Features step like terraces, bottom bulging lobe |
| Rockfall | Large mass of bedrock rapidly moves downslope Common in high lats and high altitudes One of most dangerous rock mass movements Frost wedging can lead to rockfalls where climate, topography aren't favorable for soil development and plant growth |
| Landslide | Occur due to instant igneous collapse of slope and triggered by heavy rains, earthquakes or lateral erosion by streams or road building Flow of rocks and soil |
| Earthflows | Slow moving flows (movement of loose earth materials) of mostly fine grained or clay rich sediment/soil |
| Debris Flow | Fast moving mix of sediment and flowing water |
| Mudflows | Mudflow/debris flow composed of slurry of rocky debris, sediment and water Moves very quickly, dries into cement like material |
| Lahars | Mudflows triggered by volcanic eruptions |
| Overland Flow | Unchannelized flow Influenced by vegetation cover, rainfall intensity and duration, surface characteristics and slope |
| Stream Flow | Confined to channels, 3D complexity. Deeper, wider, can carry other things Greater capacity to erode than overland flow cuz greater volume at particular time and place |
| Stream Flow Effectiveness Influenced By... | Speed and turbulence and bedrock resistance |
| Amazon Drainage Basin | Direction of Amazon River flow reversed 10 mil years ago due to combo of tectonic uplift of Andes, climate and erosion and deposition |
| Interfluves | Overland flow Not as intense, counts for lots |
| Valleys | Stream flow, concentrated volume |
| Fluvial Weathering and Erosion... | Carves out landscape where it removes material and builds up surface where it deposits material |
| Splash Erosion | Overland flow type Drops hitting the ground. Can erode and displace, especially in dry climates |
| Sheet Erosion | Once water builds up it flows across landscape and collects in big areas. Frequent really early summer rains in recent years have been increasing runoff and soil erosion from ag cropland Overland flow type |
| Rill Erosion | Small channels forming. Start of stream formation, depends on substrate Overland flow type |
| Gully Erosion | Large paths carved out of earth for water. Phemoral, fill up w/rain but then evaporates. Eventually becomes stream Overland flow type |
| Stream Flow | Water excavates banks and transports material downstream, deposits where water slows down Fluvial erosion w/in channel |
| Stream Loads | Material transported by running water Solution or dissolved, suspended, and bedload |
| Solution or Dissolved | Rock, minerals and salts |
| Suspended | Clay, silt Slower to settle Suspended in water |
| Bedload | Sand, gravel, rock fragments, boulders Sink but move Can cause massive erosion |
| Overland vs. Stream Flow | Stream flow carries greater volume, but overland contributes to large amounts of material transported since most of surface is interfluvial |
| Upper Course | Young stream Steep gradient, narrow valley, low volume, fast flow speed, downward erosion |
| Knickpoints | Variation in stream elevation due to bedrock |
| Human Alterations of Fluvial Processes- Logging | Bedrock incision (erosion) of riverbed and banks accelerated due to logging in 1800s. Cleared debris, more force in stream, more erosion |
| Valley Lengthening | Headward erosion |
| Middle Course | Mature stream Low gradient, widening valley, lateral erosion, higher volume, slower flow speed, some erosion, and high load |
| Meandering River | Rivers naturally meander, due in part of lateral erosion |
| Lower Course | Floodplain Flat gradient, widest valley, largest volume, slow flow speed, many meanders, small load size |
| Delta Formation by Deposition | Valley lengthening Deltas provide favorable environments for humans, very fertile due to deposition |
| Human Alterations of Fluvial Processes | Deforestation, Dams, Straightening channels, water withdrawals and reduced flows, increase in impervious surfaces |
| Locations of Deserts and Aridlands | Lots at 30 degrees lat Descending cool, dry air from Hadleys or rain shadow of mountains |
| Aridlands Characteristics | Thin or absent soil, coarse texture (gravel, sand), sparse vegetation, angular and steep slopes of topography, mostly physical (and chem) weathering, impervious surfaces, intense rainfall, ephemeral streams, and interior drainage basins |
| Desert Pavement | Impervious/impermeable surfaces created by lack of organic material and an evaporation of salt |
| Fluvial Erosion is... | Most important externally driven landscape shaper, even in arid climates |
| Basin and Range Terrain | Mountain ranges of variable diastrophic origin (faulting, folding, volcanism) Interior drainage basins form playas and salinas Ex. Death Valley |
| Playa | Formed by accumulation of sediments Very flat |
| Salina | Accumulation of salts where ET > P Various salt crystal piles |
| Mesa and Scarp Terrain | More common in sedimentary rocks. Differential erosion is very important, different layers of different erodibility can be more or less easily dissolved Ex. Grand Canyon |
| Resistant Dykes | Arches National Park Igneous intrusive squeezed through sedimentary rocks |
| Pinnacles | Bryce Canyon Weathering along joint systems |
| Aeolian Processes | Wind erosion processes Abrasion and Deflation |
| Loess | Wind blown silt Dust has blown in. Can have meters of dust. Defines landscape Ex. Great Plains and MS River Valley E. China |
| Loess and Carbon | Studying carbon in soils buried by Loess due to past climate change w/the removal of more Loess, more C will be exposed, More nutrition in soil and more C in atmosphere |
| Brady Soil | Paleosol rich in C that was formed 15,500-13,500 years ago and was buried by Loess |
| Transport Across Oceans | Dust from aridlands in China bring Phosphorus to subsidize tropical forest growth in highly weathered soils in HI Aeolian ocean transport brings dust from Sahara (w/nutrients like C and Phosphorus) to Caribbean and S. Am forests |
| Dust Storms | Health and visibility hazard |
| Piedmont | French for foot of mountain |
| Pluvial Lakes | Lakes filled by rainwater |
| Glacial-Interglacial Cycles | Global cooling trend last 50-60 mil years Cycles driven by variations in Earth's orbit around sun through time (Milankovitch cycles) Results in diff amount and distribution of solar energy, and these variations affect growth and melting of ice sheets |
| Pleistocene | Geologic epoch that included last Ice Ages 2.8 mil years ago-11,000 years ago |
| Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) | Most recent maximum glacial ice cover worldwide. 21,000 years ago |
| Earth's Present Climate History | Last 2 mil years (Quaternary) progressive cooling cycles of glaciation and deglaciation Past 10,00 years, Holocene. Interglacial period Current anthropogenic climate change, rate unprecendented |
| Glacier Formation | Accumulated snow layers metamorph into different ice layers. Firmer the layers the smaller the crystals and the lower the air concentration |
| Pleistocene Ice Age | LGM, 21,000 years ago Ice covered 1/3 of surface |
| Ice Cover Today | Ice covers 10% of surface |
| Continental Ice Sheets | Formed in non mountainous regions at high latitudes Most significant agent of glaciation due to vast size Only Antarctica and Greenland left |
| Mountain/Alpine Glaciers | Form at high elevations More local impacts AK and Pacific NW |
| Direct Effects of Glacial Movement | Physical weathering (abrasion and plucking), very effective erosion, long distance transport of material (100s kms), heterogenous load size, deposition |
| Glacial Till | Directly left by glaciers. Unsorted, unconsolidated different sized material Left behind, seen on road side |
| Glacial Drift | Moved by meltwater |
| Glaciers Movement | Move by own weight (deformation) or by gravity (flowing) Often produced N, moves S |
| Glacial Abrasion | Leftovers from glacial materials scratching and eroding other rock |
| Alpine Glaciers | Effective agents of erosion in mountains Carve out U shaped valleys |
| Frost Wedging | Physical weathering in alpine glaciers Ex. Balanced Rock, Devil's Lake |
| Fluvial vs. Glacial Erosion | Fluvial in mountains leads to V shaped valley, U shaped from glaciers Streams from glacier meltwater have greater flow when temperatures rise (seasonal diff, not precipitation related) |
| Fluvial vs. Glacial Deposition | Material deposited by glaciers is heterogenous in size and unsorted, fluvial loads are deposited by size as finer materials. Transported longer distances |
| Glacial Transport | Weather rock by abrasion and plucking, transport eroded materials as they flow over landscape (soil/rock) or from valley walls (alpine). Debris carried on surface, buried w/ice or under glacier |
| Erratic Boulder | Boulder deposited by retreating glaciers, doesn't match local geography |
| Moraine | Landforms composed of till deposits Terminal Moraine = farthest glacier went Recessional Moraine = Others |
| Drumlins | Low oval mound or small hill formed from glacial till Directional cue |
| Kettle Lake | Legacy of glacial landscapes Altered river flows Lake in place where boulder was plucked out |
| Esker | Tunnel under glacier, moves material in tunnel w/water |
| Periglacial | Beyond outermost edge or margin of glaciers Effects on region not directly covered by ice |
| Isostatic Rebound | Land rebounds once glacier has melted, due to weight being taken off WI has rebounded 50 meters since Ice Age Sweden and Finland are rising, Denmark is falling |
| Solifluction | Mass wasting Movement of soil downhill due to freeze thaw cycles |
| Fluvial Erosion | Meltwater has greatly increased flows in midsummer from melting ice Transports things already in and around glacier |
| Pluvial Lakes | Rainwater fed lakes, carved out areas filled w/water |
| Sea Level Change | Sea level lowers and changes in relation to glaciers Lower levels = land bridges = changes in biogeography |
| Glacial Melt Impacts in Peruvian Andes | More available water, more areas open for farming, but can only last until meltwater runs out |
| Glacial Melt Impacts in NE Tibet | Largest glacier is melting, causing massive floods |
| World is Warming | Mean temps have risen since 1900 and accelerated since 1970s |
| CO2, Methane, Nitrous Oxide | Huge increase since 1900s Less MH4 and N2O, but they are better keepers of heat |
| Ice Core Records of Greenhouse Gases | Local atmosphere at freezing time is captured in frozen ice. Extraction means we can see what the gas makeup is at various times |
| In Situ | In field measurement |
| Atmospheric Greenhouse Gases | All have risen, most dramatic rise since industrial revolution |
| Early Signs of Climate Change | Inc in temp, inc in sea level, dec in snow cover and glacial extent |
| Lake Suwa, Japan | Historical observations of ice seasonality Priest would measure when ice froze each year. Now have data dating back to 1442 to see when lake would freeze |
| River Ice Breakup Dates in Finland | 1693-today Show how earlier breakup dates, and how the industrial revolution has brought most change |
| Lake Mendota Ice Seasonality | Ice melts sooner and freezes later now than in 1852 and years in between |
| Warmer Winters Increase Drowning | 5x higher rate of drowning in warmer weather Increased risk of ice instability later in winter season w/climate change |
| Greenland Ice Losses | 34 gigatons per year 1992-2001 215 gigatons per year 2002-2011 |
| Worldwide Changes in Glacier Mass Balances | US, Patagonia, Canada are losing glacier mass fastest |
| Why is Warming Greatest at High Latitudes? | Surface temp inc, reduction in snow cover, dec in reflection of sunlight to space |
| Temperature of Permafrost is... | Increasing |
| Permafrost Increases CO2 and CH4 | New source Since there is carbon and methane stored in it, and when it melts the GHG become exposed to elements and can be decomposed, releasing CH4 and CO2 |
| Why Study Surface Processes | Foundation for other disciplines, improve natural resource management, understand risk of national hazards and improve preparedness, better understand Earth's past and predict future, appreciate surrounding enviro |
| Horns | Top of mountain with < or = to 3 sides |
| Cirques | Top of glacier Round bowl where ice starts and moves down |
| Aretes | Jagged crest that separates two adjacent glaciers |
| Dune | Hill of loose sand built by wind Wind continues to move sand to the top until pile is so steep it collapses |
| Braided Stream | Stream consisting of network of small channels separated by small and often temporary islands Occur in rivers w/low slope and/or large sediment |
| Oxbow Lake | U Shaped Cut off from meandering river, often close to meander |
| Bedload | Material being moved on/across the bottom |
Created by:
Eliana.s
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