Weathering & Soil

•______& its effects

  • ______processes that break down rock.
  • Sediments: sand, silt, & ______
  • Weathering ______the Earth’s surface.

•Mechanical Weathering

  • Occurs when ______are broken apart by physical processes.

•Caused by:

  • ______plants
  • Burrowing ______
  • ______ice

•Ice ______occurs where water enters cracks in rocks, freezes, & expands.

•As surface area increases, more rock is ______to be weathered.

•Chemical Weathering

  • Chemicals ______the minerals in rocks or change them into different minerals.
  • Naturally formed acids can weather rocks ______
  • ______acid forms when Carbon dioxide mixes with water. The acid reacts with calcite in limestone to form caves.
  • Some roots & ______plants give off acids that dissolve minerals in rock.
  • ______occurs when some materials are exposed to oxygen and water. (Rust)

•Effects of Climate

  • Mechanical weathering occurs more in ______climates.
  • ______weathering occurs more in warm, wet climates.
  • Rock type can affect the ______of weathering in a particular climate.

•Soil

•______of Soil

  • Weathering gradually ______rocks into smaller and smaller fragments.
  • Plants and animals add organic matter to the rock ______.

•Soil is a ______of

  • Weathered ______
  • Decayed ______matter
  • ______fragments
  • Water
  • ______

•______for soil formation include:

  • Climate
  • ______
  • Types of ______
  • Types of vegetation
  • Length of ______that rock has been weathering

•Composition of Soil

  • Decayed organic matter turns into a dark-colored material called ______.
  • Humus provides ______for plants.
  • Burrowing creatures mix humus with the other ______fragments.

•Soil ______

•A ______(topsoil)

  • Can be covered by litter,organic material that will eventually become humus and helps ______erosion.

•B Horizon

  • ______in color & contains less humus.
  • Leeching is the removal of minerals that have been ______by water.
  • Water reacts with humus & carbon ______to form acid.

•C Horizon

  • Made of partially weathered rock and is found at the ______of a soil profile.

•Soil Types

  • Different types of ______vary in color, depth, texture, & fertility.
  • The type of soil depends on the region’s ______.
  • Deserts are dry, prairies are ______, & temperate forests are mild & moist.

•Soil ______

•Soil – An Important Resource

  • Soil is eroded when it is moved to a new location by ______or water.
  • Soil erosion removes ______that is important for plant growth.

•Causes and ______of Soil Erosion

  • Human activities can ______therate of soil erosion.
  • Soil erosion occurs rapidly on steep slopes and areas that are not covered by ______.
  • Forest ______& overgrazing contribute to the rate at which erosion can occur.

•Preventing Soil Erosion

  • Farmers reduce erosion by planting ______belts, using no-till farming, and planting cover crops after harvesting.
  • Contour farming and terracing are used to control erosion on ______.
  • Rows of trees (______) areplanted on the plains to reduce erosion caused by wind.

Erosional Forces

Erosion

•Wearing away of surface materials by ______, water, wind, or glaciers.

•______- process where sediments are dropped by erosion agents as they lose energy.

•Mass movement occurs as ______moves materials down a ______as one large mass.

Examples: Slumping, Creeping, Rock ______, & Mudflows

  • Steep slopes can be made ______with vegetation, drainage pipes, and walls of concrete or railroad ties.

Glaciers

•Large masses of ice and ______that slowly move on land causing erosion.

•______- erosion process caused by moving glaciers picking up ______, gravel, & sand.

Scour & scrape the soil and ______

Grooves & ______indicate the direction a glacier moved.

•Glaciers ______a mixture of different sized sediments (till) when they retreat.

Moraine- a ridge, or ______, of deposit left at the end of a glacier.

Outwash- material deposited in layers by the ______of a glacier, with largest pieces closer to the glacier.

Eskers – ______deposit formed as meltwater rivers within the ice deposit sand & gravel within their channels.

•Types of Glaciers

Continental Glaciers-huge ______of ice and snow that cover large areas of land.

Covers 10% of Earth near the poles. (______& Greenland)

Ice Ages - periods of ______glaciation over the last 2 to 3 million yrs.

______than some mountain ranges.

______- exist in mountain ranges.

Cirques- bowl-shaped ______in the sides of mountains.

Arête- a long ______that forms when two valley glaciers ______a mountain side-by-side.

Peaks- form when valley glaciers erode a ______from several directions.

______formed by glaciers are “U” shaped

Wind

•Scatters dust or ______ash over thousands of kilometers.

•______- wind removes small particles of loose sediment, leaving behind heavier materials.

•Abrasion- wind behaves like a ______blowing sand grains against rocks ______them down.

•______– rows of trees planted to slow down wind in order to reduce erosion.

•Dunes – mounds of sediment ______by wind.

______Erosion

Surface Water

______

•Rainwater that doesn’t ______in to the ground or ______.

•Affected by:

Amount of ______

______of time it falls

Steepness, or ______, of the land

______of vegetation

Rivers & Streams

•River system –network of ______& streams that come together to form a system.

•Drainage Basin- area of land from which a stream or river collects ______

The ______River ______basin is the largest in the United States

______River

Flows swiftly through a ______valley.

May have ______& waterfalls.

______the bottom faster than the sides.

“V” shaped ______

______Stream

Flows ______through the valley.

Erodes more on the sides.

Forms ______& oxbow lakes.

Carves a flat, broad valley floor called a ______

______Stream

Flows smoothly through a ______it has carved.

Delta – fan shaped area formed by sediments that are ______as water empties into an ocean or lake.

______– fan shaped area formed by sediments that are deposited as water empties from a mountain valley onto a flat open plain.

Groundwater

•Groundwater is water that soaks into the ground and collects in the ______of the underlying soil.

•Soil and rock are ______if water can pass through the pore spaces. (Sandstone)

•Soil and rock are impermeable if water cannot pass through the pore spaces. (______)

•______– a layer of permeable rock that lets water move freely.

Zone of Saturation: area where all the ______are filled with water.

Water Table: upper ______of the zone of saturation.

•______are used to pump groundwater from an ______to the surface.

Artesian wells – wells that don’t require a pump because the water is under ______.

______– free flowing water because the water ______is so close to the surface.

Geyser – hot spring that erupts ______, shooting water & steam into the air.

•______are formed by Carbonic acid dissolving limestone rock, thereby enlarging cracks to form chambers.

Stalactites– Calcium ______deposits that hang from a cave’s ceiling.

______– Calcium carbonate deposits that form on a ______floor.

•Other Features:

______Straws

Cave ______

Cave Pearls

______

Columns

______Shoreline

•Shoreline Forces

Waves ______against pound against shores.

Currents move sediments along the ______.

______carry sediment out to sea & bring in new sediment.

•Rocky Shorelines

______& cliffs

•Sandy Beaches

Beaches –deposits of sediments ______to the shore.

______– fragile sand deposits that parallel the shore but are ______from the mainland.