187 Cards in this Set
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Mechanical weathering
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is the physical breakdown of rocks and minerals into smaller pieces
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Chemical weathering
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is the decomposition of rocks and minerals into new minerals due to the presence of water.
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The source of energy for weathering is?
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Solar energy/ radiation
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increases in volume when water freezes to ice physically breaks rock into smaller pieces.
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Frost Action or Frost weding
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coarse angular rock material that accumulates at the base of a slope or cliff
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Talus
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opens large fractures in rocks and allows other processes to operate?
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Stress Release / Pressure Release
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Mechanical disintegration of rocks due to growth of salt crystals?
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Salt Weathering / Crystal growth
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alternate heating and cooling of rock surfaces under direct solar heating physically disintegrates rock material?
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Thermal Expansion and Contraction
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What is the relationship between mechanical and chemical weathering?
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mechanical weathering breaks rocks down into smaller pieces which creates more surface area for chemical weathering to take place.
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this process is dependent on available surface for reaction temperatures and presence of chemically active fluids?
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Chemical weathering
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this is the decomposition of rocks and minerals into new minerals and substances due to the presence of water.
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Chemical Weathering
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What is the primary substance needed for chemical weathering to occur?
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water
oxygen
hydrogen
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Chemical reaction whereby ions pass from a mineral into a solution?
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Dissolution
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Chemical reaction with water in which an O-H bond is broken?
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Chemical reaction with water in which an O-H bond is broken?
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Chemical reaction in which oxygen as an oxidizing agent causes a loss of electrons by an atom or ion and thus involves an increase in oxidation number?
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Oxidation
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Factors that influence chemical weathering
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Climate
Rock Structure
Organic Activity
Time
Mineral and Rock Compostion
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minerals that crystalize at higher temperatures will be the least stable at the surface and ...
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most susceptible to chemical weathering
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What are the most stable minerals?
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Oxide minerals
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The second most stable mineral is what?
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Clay minerals
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An isolated pile of boulders or jumbled pile of highly jointed blocks formed by 2-stage process of weathering erosion?
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Tors and Castle Koppies
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Vertically elongated blocks of rocks that originate from weathering along strongly developed vertical joints?
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Turrets
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An isolated, erosional mass of rock supported by or balanced on a pedestal formed by differential weathering and erosion?
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Pedestal Rocks
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A fantastic column , pinnacle, or pillar of rock produced in a region of sporadic heavy rainfall by differential weathering and erosion of horizontal strata?
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Hoodoos
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an isolated, residual, conical hill, formed by a capping of resistant rock that protects the underlying softer material from erosion. Resembles a indian tee pee
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Tepee Butte or Tepee Rock
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Honeycomb texture / structure formed by cavernous weathering on the surfaces of some sandstones or granites, which forms due to salt crystallization and subsequent thermal expansion and contraction on rock surfaces in costal or desert environments
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Tafoni or Cavernous Weathering
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A shallow depression on flat or gently sloping exposures of granite due to dissolution in impounded shallow pools of water?
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Weathering Pit
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Mantle of loose, unconsolidated, in situ weathered rock material which rests on solid, unaltered rock?
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Regolith
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Natural body consisting of layers (horizons) of mineral and or organic constituents of variable thickness, which differs from the parent materials in physical, chemical, mineralogical and biological properties.
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Soil
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Mostly organic material or humus?
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O Horizon
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Some humus but mostly mineral matter?
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A-Horizon
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Very fine grained iron and aluminum?
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E-Horizon
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This horizon is called the zone of accumulation because clay minerals, iron oxides and carbonates accumulate here?
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B-Horizon
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Zone of partially decomposed rock?
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C-Horizon
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Zone of unweathered bedrock
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R-Horizon
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Occurs in humid temperate climate zone and produces complete weathering in the A-horizon, a distinct E-horizon , iron oxides and clay minerals accumulate in the B-horizon , and nutrients in the o-horizon?
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Podzolization
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Occurs in arid climate zone and produces incomplete weathering and nutrients in the A-Horizon and precipitates calcium carbonate and calcite in the B-Horizons, produces Pedocals
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Calcification
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Occurs in tropical climate zones and produces highly oxidized soils and intense leaching of silica and accumulation of iron. Produces Laterites?
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Laterization
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Tropical soils which intense leaching removes everything except very insoluble residues of aluminum and or iron oxides?
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Laterites
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a buried soil that formed at some time during the geologic past?
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Paleosol
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slow or rapid downslope movement of Regolith or rock materials under the influence of gravity?
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Mass movement
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gravity derived loose, incoherent regolith or rock material at the foot of slope or cliff?
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Colluvium
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What are the two opposing forces that determine whether regolith or a rock mass on a slope will remain stationary?
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Shear stress (driving force) and shear strength (resisting force)
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causes movement of a mass of rock or regolth to move parallel to a slope?
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Shear stress (driving force)
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On a slope, gravity consist of two components which are...
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Perpendicular and Downslope
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acts at a right angle to the slope and tends to hold objects in place?
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Perpendicular component
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Parallel component acts parallel to and down the slope and causes an object to move downslope.
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Downslope component
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If resisting force exceeds the driving force, material on the slope will...
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remain in place
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If the driving force (shear stress) is greater than resisting force (shear strength), material on a slope will...
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move downslope
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The maximum angle at which unconsolidated granular materials can be piled?
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angle of repose
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erosional path that landslide debris takes as it moves down slope?
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Chute or track
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area at the base of scar, which is depositional, often has hummocky surficial appearance and is fan shaped in map/aerial view?
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Toe
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classification of mass movement is based on what?
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- Type of movement
- type of earth materials
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extremely rapid type of mass movement in which individual pieces of bedrock or regolith/soil materials falls directly through the air?
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falls
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mass movement in which a coherent mass of bedrock or soil material moves downslope along a smooth, planar surface?
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Slides or translational slides
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slow rotational type of mass movement in which a coherent mass of bedrock or soil material moves down slope along a curved, concaved upward, spoon shaped surface.
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Slumps or rotational slides
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slow to very rapid type of mass movement in which soil material moves downslope as a viscous, water saturated slurry like fluid?
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flows
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extremely slow type of down slope flow movement of fine grained somewhat water saturated regolith or soil and air?
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creep
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very slow, water saturated regolith or soil moves downslope as a flow in sheets and lobes?
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Solifluction
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extremely rapid type of mass movement in which bedrock or regolith soil material moves downslope as a granular flow on a cushion of air?
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avalanche
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combination of or more types of mass movements over space and time?
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Composite
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What happen with the introduction of water?
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1. reduces friction
2. increases pore water pressure
3. adds weight
4. may reduce cohesion
5. weakens materials by decomposition
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geographic area where annual rainfall is less than 10 inches or in which the potential evaporation rate exceeds the precipitation rate?
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desert or arid climate region
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desert land occupy how much of the land area in the world outside of the polar regions?
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25%
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the most extensive deserts are associated with 2 circum global belts of dry, descending air located between latitudes 20 and 30 degrees?
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subtropical deserts
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this type of desert is found in continental interiors far from sources of moisture where hot summer and cold winter prevail?
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continental deserts
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this type of desert is found where a mountain range creates a barrier to the flow of moist air, forcing the air upward so that most of the moist air is precipitated out as air masses cross a mountain range, thus leaving a zone of low precipitation on the lee side of a major mountain range…
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Rainshadow deserts
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this type of desert occurs locally along the margins of continents where cold, up welling seawater cools maritime air flowing onshore?
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Costal deserts
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this type of desert occurs where precipitation is extremely low due to sinking cold, dry air.
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Polar deserts
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in arid and semi arid climate zones, what type of weathering is dominant?
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Mechanical weathering
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extensive, flat topped, steep sided desert highlands, usually capped by some type of rock that is relatively resistant to weathering and erosion?
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Plateau
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a large, isolated, flat topped, steep sided desert table land, usually capped by some type of rock that is relatively resistant to weathering or erosion?
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Mesa
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a medium sized, isolated, flat topped, steep sided desert hill usually capped by some type of rock that is resistant to weathering or erosion?
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Butte
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a small sized, isolated, steep sided desert hill/erosional remnant that remains as buttes erode back by mechanical weathering and mass wasting processes?
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Pinnacle/
Pedestal rock
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a fan shaped body that accumulates where a stream leaves a steep mountain valley?
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alluvial fan
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a broad alluvial apron composed of coalescing alluvial fans?
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Bajadas
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a gently sloping surface cut across bedrock or thinly veneered with alluvium that slopes away from the base of a mountain front in an arid to semi arid region?
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pediments
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steep sided mountains, ridges, or isolated hills that rise abruptly from adjoining plains or a rock island surrounded by an extensive flat area?
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Inselbergs
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the picking up and removal of sand and dust by wind?
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deflation
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a surface layer of coarse particles concentrated mainly by the process of deflation?
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dessert pavement
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wind eroded elliptical to circular areas of easily eroded sediment that are form in dune fields in arid coastal environments, these depressions are usually elongate in the direction of the prevailing wind?
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Pans
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a dry lake bed characterized by a dusty salt flat of evaporate minerals such as halite, gypsum, sylvite?
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Playa or Playa lakes
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erosional process that results when rock is impacted by wind driven grains of sediment?
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abrasion
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any bedrock surface or stone that has been abraded and shaped by wind blown sediment?
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Ventifact
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wind parallel ridge of soft rock or slightly consolidated sediment that remains after erosion by deflation and abrasion?
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Yardang
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a curving ridge or hill of sand deposited by wind?
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Dune
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a Spanish term for dune?
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Medano
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moves small particles in the direction of the wind in a series of short hops, jumps, or skips?
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Saltation
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Dune type is controlled by what?
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1. the amount of sand available
2. the variability of the wind
3. amount of vegetation cover
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are crescent shaped dunes with horns pointing downwind?
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Barchan dunes
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sand dune that forms an asymmetrical ridge crest transverse to the dominant wind direction?
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Transverse Dunes
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are long relatively straight, ridge shaped dunes in deserts with limited sand supply and bi-directional winds
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Linear or Longitudinal Dunes
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are isolated hills of sand having a base that resembles a star in a map or aerial view?
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Star Dunes
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are a dune shaped like a U or V with the open end facing up wind?
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Parabolic Dunes
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Transition between barchan and transverse dune?
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Barchanoid - transverse dune
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Barchanoid - transverse dune
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Loess
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mountain building or up lifting?
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Orogeny
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in which strain is proportional to applied stress and the deformation is recoverable?
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Elastic Deformation
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the maximum stress that a substance can withstand and still show elastic behavior is called?
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Elastic or Yield Point
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strain is not proportional to applied stress, and deformation in not recoverable?
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Plastic deformation
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stress that pushes inward or downward uniformly from many directions?
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Confining stress or presure
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what are the three types of directional stresses?
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1. Compressional stress
2. Tensional stress
3. Shear Stress
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stress that pushes together on a rock body or compresses it?
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Compressional Stress
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stress that pulls a rock apart or extends it?
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Tensional stress
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stress that causes a rock body to break along an infinite number of parallel planes and slide along those planes.
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stress that causes a rock body to break along an infinite number of parallel planes and slide along those planes.
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is a fracture along which there has been little or no displacement?
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Joint
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a fracture along which there has been significant displacement?
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Fault
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faults along which the relative motion has been essentially up and down along the dip surface of the fault plane?
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Dip slip faults
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dip slip fault in which the hanging wall block moves down relative to the footwall block?
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Normal Vault
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dip slip fault in which the hanging wall block moves up relative to the footwall block?
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Reverse Fault
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have the same sense of motion as reverse faults but differ in that the fault plane has a sub-horizontal inclination usually 15 degrees or less from the horizontal?
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Thrust faults
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faults along which the dominant sense of displacement has been horizontal or parallel to the strike of the fault?
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Strike slip fault
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is a buried surface of erosion or non deposition , which represents a break in the rock record?
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unconformity
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a series of sedimentary rocks form, next the rocks are deformed by folding or tilting, next a massive erosion event occurs, then a series of younger horizontal sedimentary rocks are deposited?
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Angular Unconformity
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a series of sedimentary rocks form, then terrain is uplifted without any internal deformation, next a period of non-deposition occurs or an erosion event occurs, then a series of younger horizontal sedimentary rocks are deposited?
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Disconformity
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intrusive igneous or metamorphic rock form, next a massive erosion event occurs, then a series of younger sedimentary rocks are deposited?
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Nonconformity
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is the circulation of water from the earths surface to its atmosphere and back again?
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Hydrologic cycle
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The hydrologic cycle is driven by solar energy and consists of 4 processes?
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1. precipitation
2. infiltration
3.runoff
4.evaporation
5.transpiration
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What factors control balance between runoff and infiltration?
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1. intensity and duration
2. soil texture
3. slope
4. land use
5. climate
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is water that is stored underground in pores spaces in soil, sediment, and rocks or in fractures or cavities in rocks in the saturated zone?
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Ground water
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percentage of total volume of sediment or rock that is void/pore space?
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Porosity
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intergranular porosity that develops when a rock forms?
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Primary Porosity
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porosity that results from fractures and cavities after a rock has formed?
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Secondary Porosity
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capacity of earth materials to transmit fluid?
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permeability
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the zone immediately below the land surface where the pores contain both water and air, but are not totally saturated with water?
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Unsaturated zone
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zone below the ground surface in which all openings are filled with water?
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saturated zone
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is the upper surface of the saturated zone?
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water table
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Darcy's Law
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V=K(h/L)/n
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unit of earth that is both porous and permeable so both stores and transmits water?
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Aquifer
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unit of earth materials that my be porous but has low permeability/hydraulic conductivity so may store water but does not transmit it freely?
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Aquiclude
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Groundwater in the aquifer is at atmospheric pressure and bounded by the water table?
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unconfined aquifer or water table aquifer
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groundwater in the aquifer is at higher pressure so groundwater rises higher than the top of the aquifer?
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Confined or artesian aquifers
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areas of natural discharge where the water table intersects ground surface?
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Springs
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areas of natural discharge where the water table lies about the ground surface?
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Swamps
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natural discharge of groundwater into streams that maintains a minimal stream flow?
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Baseflow
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Baseflow
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Wells
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lowering or vertical drop in water table due to pumping?
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drawdown
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depression of the water table surrounding well, which forms as a result of pumping and drawdown?
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Cone of Depression
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long term over withdrawal of ground water relative to natural recharge, sometimes called water mining?
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Groundwater depletion and lowered water table
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occurs in areas where there is thick wedge of unconsolidated sediments when the ground water slowly sinks as ground water withdrawal causes tighter packing of grains?
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ground subsidence
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occurs due to the over withdrawal of ground water in costal areas due to density difference between fresh and saltwater?
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saltwater intrusion
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is a naturally occurring cavity or system of interconnected passages, which occur beneath the surface of the earth and is large enough to be enter by a man or woman?
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Cave
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an animal that lives entirely in the dark parts of caves?
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troglobite
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one of various types of men inhabiting caves or dens?
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troglodyte
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a specific lave tube or segment of lava tube that drained and is large enough to be entered by human beings?
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Lava tube caves
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caves formed by the action of water or wind, carrying abrasive particles capable of carving rock, similar to how canyons are formed?
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erosional caves
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caves that are dissolved out of soluble rocks by aggressive acidic groundwater?
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Solution caves
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a terrain with distinctive drainage, hydrology, and land forms arising from a combination of high rock solubility and well developed secondary porosity?
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Karst or karst topography
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When are solution caves dissolved?
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While they are under the water table?
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is a type of limestone formed from drops falling from cave roofs and walls?
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drip stone
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type of limestone formed from thin films or trickles of water over cave floors?
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Flowstone
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cave containing a stream and active speleothems?
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Active cave
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cave without streams or active drip formation of speleothems?
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dry cave
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What is the longest cave system in the world?
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Mammoth Cave system in Kentucky, 348 miles
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Where is the largest cave room or chamber?
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Malaysian state of Sarawak in Borneo
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Where is the deepest cave?
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Carlsbad caverns in New Mexico
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a conical or cylindrical Speleothem usually with a central hollow tube that hangs down from the roof or wall of a cave?
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Stalactite
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a speleothem projecting vertically upward from a cave floor and formed by precipitation from drips?
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Stalagmite
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A speleothem from cave floor to cave ceiling, formed by the growth and joining of a stalagmite and stalactite?
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Column
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a speleothem formed from thin films or trickles of water over cave floors or walks?
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Flowstone
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A speleothem deposited from calcite rich solutions flowing along an overhung surface?
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cave draperies
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a speleothem formed from concentric concretions found in shallow cave pools in which water drips?
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cave pearls
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a speleothem which is thin, circular disk of calcite projecting from a cave wall, usually at a upward inclination and with underside draped with stalactites and curtains?
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Sheild
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a ridge like deposit, often curved convexly downstream, formed by precipitation from water flowing over the rim of a pool?
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Rimstone dams
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a variety of micro crystalline, coralloid calcite deposit that is distinguished by curved outer surfaces and curved internal structures that are splash deposits or precipitated onto cave passage walls from mist or then surface films of saturated water?
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Cave Popcorn
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small variety of stalactites calcite growth that is twisted and contorted with no apparent regard for gravity?
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Helictites
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a group of crystal commonly of gypsum, that grow by accretion at their base on a cave wall?
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Cave flowers
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cave feature that are formed by erosion and occur in mostly limestone?
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Spelogens
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a single erosional bowl, rounded mainly by swirling current in a stream flowing through a cave?
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Potholes
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spoon shaped hollows carved in a cave wall, floor, or ceiling due to erosion by flowing water?
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Scallops
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a horizontal bench or slot, typically 1 to 3 meters high, cut at the zone of maximum dissolution and erosion into a limestone cave wall?
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Notches
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a smooth surface projection from the roof of a cave, formed by dissolution?
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Roof Pendants
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Remnant of bedrock joining the cave floor and ceiling?
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Pillars
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Karst terrains in temperate climate zones are generally referred to as?
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Sinkhole karst
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a closed, funnel shaped or bowl shaped depression or basin in limestone formed due to dissolution or collapse?
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Sinkhole or doline
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a surface stream that disappears underground into cave system?
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disappearing or sinking stream
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a valley without a surface stream channel?
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dry valley
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a valley that is closed abruptly at its lower end by a cliff or slope facing up the valley?
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Blind valley
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a bridge of rock spanning a ravine or valley and formed by erosive agents, in karst terrains by dissolution of limestone?
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Natural bridge
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Reddish brown , residual clay soil developed on limestone?
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Terra Rosa
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Karst terrains in tropical climate zones are referred to as?
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Tower Karst
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Karst topography that is characterized by steep sided cylindrical shaped limestone hills?
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Tower karst
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hard calcareous mineral deposited by flowing water that is the same as sinter and comparable to softer tufa?
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Travertine
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a chemical sedimentary rock composed of calcium carbonate, formed by evaporation as a thin, surficial, especially soft and spongy incrustation around the mouth of a calcareous spring or seep?
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Tufa
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hard, dense variety of tufa which is deposited by flowing water, most commonly build up terraces or gour or rimstone dams?
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Travertine
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relatively small scale surface karst that form as a result of dissolution of carbonate rocks on the surface or under a subsurface soil cover?
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Karren
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tropical karst characterized by 50 meter high vertical rock blades fretted with sharp edged Karren that form due to very high rates of surface dissolution in tropical climates?
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Pinnacle Karst
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are vertical rod like spires suspended downward from the top of some cave entrances in tropical climate regions that form from dissolution of limestone?
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Phytokarst or photokarst
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Landslides - Flashcards