Earth Science Vocab Unit 8

Front 1

ripple marks

Back 1

preserved marks, made by wind, waves currents or sand

Front 2

mudcracks

Back 2

develop when wet clay dries and contracts

Front 3

geode

Back 3

hollows in rocks lined with crystals of quartz or calcite

Front 4

sorting

Back 4

separation of sediments (rock fragments) by size

Front 5

carbonic acid

Back 5

a weak acid formed when carbon dioxide dissolves in water

Front 6

chemical rocks

Back 6

sedimentary rocks formed form a mineral's precipitate by evaporation or by chemical action

Front 7

clastic rocks

Back 7

most common of sedimentary rocks formed from fragments or pieces of other rocks

Front 8

organic rocks

Back 8

sedimentary rocks formed from the remains of plants and/or animals

Front 9

sedimentary rocks

Back 9

rocks formed from sediments bound or stuck together in some way

Front 10

stratification

Back 10

the arrangement of rock beds in visible layers

Front 11

deposition

Back 11

final stage of the erosional process in which the movement of transported materials slows and they are dropped in another location

Front 12

deposition

Back 12

occurs when sediments are laid down on the ground or sink to the bottom of a body of water

Front 13

chemical weathering

Back 13

process by which rocks and minerals undergo changes in their composition due to chemical reactions with agents such as acids, water, oxygen, and carbon dioxide

Front 14

erosion

Back 14

movement fo weathered materials from one location to another by agents such as water, wind, glaciers, and gravity

Front 15

exfoliation

Back 15

mechanical weathering process in which outer rock layers are stripped away, often resulting in dome-shaped formations

Front 16

frost wedging

Back 16

mechanical weathering process that occurs when water repeatedly freezes and thaws in the cracks of rocks, often resulting in rocks splitting

Front 17

gully erosion

Back 17

erosion that occurs when a rill channel widens and deepens

Front 18

hydrolysis

Back 18

chemical reaction of water with other substances

Front 19

mechanical weathering

Back 19

process that breaks dwon rocks and minerals into smaller pieces but does not involve any change in their composition

Front 20

oxidation

Back 20

chemical reaction of oxygen with other substances

Front 21

residual soil

Back 21

soil located above its parent bedrock

Front 22

rill erosion

Back 22

erosion in which water running down the side of a slope carves a small stream channel

Front 23

soil

Back 23

loose covering of weathered rock and decayed organic matter overlying Earth's bedrock that is characterized by texture, fertility, and color and whose composition is detrermined by its parent rock and environmental conditions

Front 24

soil horizon

Back 24

a distinct layer within a soil profile

Front 25

soil profile

Back 25

vertical sequence of soil layers, containing horizon A (topsoil), horizon B (subsoil), and horizon C (weathered parent material)

Front 26

transported soil

Back 26

soil that has been moved away from its parent material by water, wind, or a glacier

Front 27

abrasion

Back 27

a process of erosion that occurs when particles such as sand rub against the surface of rocks or other materials

Front 28

fossil

Back 28

remains or evidence of a once-living plant or animal

Front 29

sediments

Back 29

solid particles deposited on Earth's Surface that can form sedimentary rocks by processes such as weathering, erosion, deposition, and lithification

Front 30

weathering

Back 30

chemical or mechanical process that breaks down and changes rocks on or near Earth's surface and whose rate is influenced by factors such as precipitation and temperature