Earth Science- Chapter 5

Front 1

Mechanical weathering

Back 1

Occurs when physical forces (ice, rain, wind) break rock into smaller pieces without changing what minerals the rock is made of (example: think of tearing paper into small pieces- it changes the size but not the paper)

Front 2

Frost wedging

Back 2

When water freezes and expands in cracks of rock many times and breaks the rock into pieces

Front 3

Talus

Back 3

Pieces of rock that are broken off. They fall into large piles, mostly at the base of steep, rocky cliffs

Front 4

Exfoliation

Back 4

When outer layers of igneous rock separate like the layers of an onion and break loose

Front 5

Chemical weathering

Back 5

When rock changes into one or more new compounds. Water is the most important of chemical weathering (example: think of burning paper, which changes the paper into something else)

Front 6

Pedalfer

Back 6

Soil (brown to red-brown color) that usually forms in areas that get more than 63 cm of rain per year (eastern US in forested areas)

Front 7

Regolith

Back 7

layer of rock and mineral fragments caused by weathering

Front 8

Soil

Back 8

part of the regolith that plants grow in

Front 9

Soil horizon

Back 9

different sections of soil, made of A, B and C Horizons

Front 10

Soil profile

Back 10

vertical section through the soil horizons showing different texture, composition and color (see picture page 138)

Front 11

Pedocal

Back 11

type of soil found in drier Western US in areas that have grasses. usually light gray-brown in color.

Front 12

Laterite

Back 12

soil found in hot, wet tropical areas. color is orange-red. when dried, laterite is very hard and practically waterproof- can make bricks out of it.

Front 13

A Horizon

Back 13

top layer of soil, known as topsoil. full of insects, fungi and decomposed plants.

Front 14

B Horizon

Back 14

2nd layer of soil, called subsoil. contains clay. lower limit of plant roots and burrowing animals.

Front 15

C Horizon

Back 15

bottom layer, made of partiallyweathered rock and mineral material

Front 16

Mass movement

Back 16

transfer of rock and soil downhill due to gravity

Front 17

Rockfall

Back 17

when rocks or rock fragments fall freely

Front 18

Rockslide

Back 18

bedrock that slides suddenly along a flat, inclined surface

Front 19

Slump

Back 19

rock that moves down along a curved surface. doesn't usually travel fast or far.

Front 20

Mudflow

Back 20

mass movement of dirt and water that moves quickly. has consistency of wet concrete. (ex. mudslides in outhern California)

Front 21

Earthflow

Back 21

soil moves slowly when water saturates hillside. movement can continue for years.

Front 22

Creep

Back 22

slowest type of soil movement, caused by freezing and thawing. this makes vertical structures tilt (ex. gravestones).