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Earth'sSurface/3/1-3
Erosion and Deposition
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Erosion | The process by which water, ice, wind, or gravity moves weathered particles of rock and soil. |
Sediment | Small, solid pieces of material that come from rocks or the remains of organisms; earth materials deposited by erosion. |
Deposition | Process in which sediment is laid down in new locations. |
Gravity | The attractive force between objects; the force that moves objects downhill. |
Mass movement | Any one of several processes by which gravity moves sediment downhill. |
Runoff | Water that flows over the ground surface rather than soaking into the ground. |
Rill | Any tiny groove in soil made by flowing water. |
Gully | A large channel in soil that carries runoff after a rainstorm. |
Stream | A channel through which water is continually flowing downhill. |
Tributary | A stream or river that flows into a larger river. |
Flood plain | The flat, wide area of land along a river. |
Meander | A looplike bend in the course of a river. |
Oxbow lake | A meander cut off from a river. |
Delta | A landform made of sediment that is deposited where a river flows into an ocean or lake. |
Alluvial fan | A wide, sloping deposit of sediment formed where a streamed leaves a mountain range. |
Groundwater | Water that fills the cracks and spaces in underground soil and rock layers. |
Stalactite | A icicle-like structure that hangs from the ceiling of a cavern, |
Stalagmite | A columnlike form that grows upward from the floor of a cavern. |
Karst topography | A region in which a later of limestone close to the surface creates deep valleys, caverns, and sinkholes. |
Glacier | Any large mass of ice that moves slowly over land. |
Continental glacier | A glacier that covers much of a continent or large island. |
Ice age | Time in Earth's history during which glaciers covered large parts of the surface. |
Valley glacier | A long, narrow glacier that forms when snow and ice build up in a mountain valley. |
Plucking | The process by which a glacier picks up rocks as it flows over the land. |
Till | The sediments deposited directly by a glacier. |
Moraine | A ridge formed by the till deposited at the edge of a glacier. |
Kettle | A small depression that forms when a chunk of ice is left in glacial till. |