Exam 2 Questions

Front 1

Excessive groundwater withdrawals can cause.....

Back 1

water table drops or declines in elevation.

Front 2

___________ would have the largest capacity to naturally remove pollutants.

Back 2

Slightly clayey sand.

Front 3

_________________is the volume of voids or open space in a rock or unconsolidated material

Back 3

Porosity

Front 4

Which one of the following statements is true for an artesian aquifer?

Back 4

The water table in the recharge area is at a higher elevation than the top of the aquifer in the subsurface.

Front 5

Which one of the following concerning stalactites and stalagmites is not true?

Back 5

Stalagmites form on the floors of caves below the water table.

Front 6

The aerated zone ________.

Back 6

lies above the water table.

Front 7

Which one of the following concerning artesian wells is not true?

Back 7

When the well penetrates the aquifer, the water rises to the bottom of the aquitard above the aquifer.

Front 8

The water table is ______________.

Back 8

a boundary between saturated rock below and unsaturated rock above.

Front 9

An aquifer is ________.

Back 9

a saturated, porous, and permeable layer or stratum.

Front 10

Which of the following describes the configuration of an unconfined water table around a pumping well?

Back 10

cone of depression.

Front 11

________ controls the ease (or difficulty) of groundwater transmission through a porous material.

Back 11

Permeability

Front 12

Which common, rock-forming mineral or mineral group is most readily dissolved by groundwater?

Back 12

calcite

Front 13

________ are characteristics found in all good aquifers.

Back 13

High porosity and high permeability

Front 14

A ________ is the icicle-like speleothem that grows down from the roof of a cavern.

Back 14

stalactite

Front 15

Which of the following best describes how geysers erupt?

Back 15

With a slight reduction in pressure, water in a saturated, natural conduit suddenly boils, sending a plume of steam and hot water into the air above the vent.

Front 16

Which of the following is not a general characteristic of groundwater?

Back 16

rarely contains dissolved constituents.

Front 17

An unconfined water table is the ________________

Back 17

boundary between the aerated zone above and saturated zone below.

Front 18

The ___________ is the upper boundary surface of the saturated zone.

Back 18

water table

Front 19

What property describes how readily groundwater will flow through a saturated porous material?

Back 19

Permeability

Front 20

Highly impermeable layers such as compacted clay or shale are known as ______________.

Back 20

Aquitard

Front 21

What term denotes the percentage of open space or voids in a material?

Back 21

Porosity

Front 22

What feature originates where the water table intersects the land surface?

Back 22

Spring

Front 23

What term describes a groundwater system in which water in a well rises above the top of the aquifer without use of a pump?

Back 23

Artesian

Front 24

Which slender, conical speleotherm grows from water dripping from the ceiling of a cavern?

Back 24

Stalctite

Front 25

A terrain exhibiting many distinctive features related to subsurface solution of limestone is known as ___________.

Back 25

Karst

Front 26

A hydrothermal vent that periodically or occasionally erupts a column of steam and hot water is called a ____________.

Back 26

Geyser

Front 27

A _____________ is a circular to elliptical, closed depressions in karst areas.

Back 27

Sinkhole

Front 28

Which speleothem grows upward from the floor of a cavern?

Back 28

Stalagmite

Front 29

The unsaturated zone above the water table is also known as the ___________.

Back 29

Zone of Aeration

Front 30

Which one of the following statements concerning glacial deposits is not true?

Back 30

Glacial erratics are blocks of rock that are too large for the glacier to move.

Front 31

Where is the world's largest ice sheet located today?

Back 31

Antarctica

Front 32

A ________ is an erosional feature specifically produced by alpine glaciation.

Back 32

U-shaped Valley

Front 33

________ are erosional features produced by valley/alpine glaciers.

Back 33

Cirques

Front 34

A ________ forms when stagnant, glacial ice melts after being buried by drift.

Back 34

kettle

Front 35

A(n) ________ is similar in appearance to a sinkhole of a karst area.

Back 35

kettle

Front 36

The bottom or downward tip of a crevasse marks the ________.

Back 36

top of the internal deformation and flowage zone

Front 37

What type of moraine is formed by the merging of two lateral moraines at a junction of two valley glaciers?

Back 37

medial

Front 38

A ________ cross-valley profile is typical of canyons and valleys eroded and deepened by alpine or valley glaciers.

Back 38

U

Front 39

Which process occurs where a glacier enters the sea?

Back 39

calving

Front 40

A(n) ________ represents a former meltwater channel or tunnel in glacial ice that was filled with sand and gravel.

Back 40

esker

Front 41

Which one of the following applies to a valley glacier that lengthens (extends its terminus downslope) over a period of many years?

Back 41

Accumulation exceeds wastage

Front 42

A fiord is....

Back 42

a stream valley, deepened by glacial erosion, that floods as sea level rises.

Front 43

A ________ is a glacier-cut valley that partly flooded as sea level rose.

Back 43

fiord

Front 44

A(n) ________ is likely to host a waterfall or steep rapids today.

Back 44

hanging valley

Front 45

Where is the world's second largest continental ice sheet?

Back 45

Greenland

Front 46

Approximately how long ago did the last of the great North American ice sheets melt?

Back 46

15,000 years

Front 47

A drumlin is ...

Back 47

smooth, tapering ridge of till; formed and shaped beneath a continental ice sheet.

Front 48

Which of the following is often associated with a cirque basin in high, mountainous terrain?

Back 48

tarn lake

Front 49

The upper 40 meters or so of a glacier is known as the zone of _____________.

Back 49

fracture

Front 50

List the two, major mechanisms of glacial flow

Back 50

Plastic Flow and Basal Slip

Front 51

What term describes open fissures in the brittle, surface ice of a glacier?

Back 51

Crevasse

Front 52

What general term denotes wastage of a glacier?

Back 52

Ablation

Front 53

Bridal Veil Falls in Yosemite National Park is an example of a ____________.

Back 53

hanging valley

Front 54

Bowl-shaped depressions in bedrock at upstream ends of alpine glacial valleys are called __________

Back 54

Cirques

Front 55

__________ are smoothly tapered, elongated hills of till shaped by an overriding, continental ice sheet.

Back 55

Drumlins

Front 56

A(n) ____________ is a closed depression formed by melting of an ice block buried in a moraine or outwash plain.

Back 56

Kettle

Front 57

A(n) ____________ is a narrow, winding ridge composed of outwash deposited in a tunnel or channel cut into stagnant, glacial ice.

Back 57

Esker

Front 58

Valleys deeply eroded by alpine glaciers have what characteristic, cross-valley profile?

Back 58

U-shape

Front 59

Which of the following must result in a lower base level for rivers and streams?

Back 59

sea level falls; land rises

Front 60

A stream begins at an elevation of 200 meters and flows a distance of 400 kilometers to the ocean? What is the average gradient?

Back 60

0.5m/km

Front 61

Which of the following features characterize wide streams and valleys?

Back 61

natural levees; broad floodplains

Front 62

Which one of the following statements is true concerning natural levees?

Back 62

Mostly fine sand and silt that build up during floods.

Front 63

Many larger rivers in the Colorado Plateau region meander in deep, narrow canyons and have no floodplains. How could this happen?

Back 63

Original, old age streams downcut as the land gradually rose.

Front 64

A ________ stream pattern develops on lands underlain by tilted or folded, alternating hard and soft, sedimentary strata.

Back 64

trellis

Front 65

Which of the following is the correct definition of stream gradient?

Back 65

the drop in elevation of a stream divided by the distance the water travels

Front 66

A ________ stream pattern is developed only on growing mountains like volcanoes or where the land surface is tectonically doming upward.

Back 66

radial

Front 67

Where is erosion concentrated along a meandering stream?

Back 67

on the outer parts of the meander loops or bends

Front 68

Which one of the following would cause stream rejuvenation?

Back 68

the land is uplifted

Front 69

Entrenched meanders are evidence for what sequence of geologic events?

Back 69

Land uplift was followed by stream downcutting.

Front 70

The ________ river has the largest discharge of any in the world.

Back 70

AMAZON

Front 71

________ are characteristics of downcutting streams and a youthful stage of valley evolution.

Back 71

Rapids and lots of whitewater

Front 72

What is the drop in water surface elevation divided by the distance the water flows?

Back 72

stream gradient

Front 73

________ are components of the hydrologic cycle that release water vapor directly to the atmosphere.

Back 73

Evaporation and transpiration

Front 74

________ is an abandoned, cutoff, meander loop.

Back 74

An oxbow

Front 75

How does urbanization (paving, etc.) affect runoff and infiltration in a small, previously forested, drainage basin?

Back 75

infiltration decreases; runoff increases.

Front 76

The lowest elevation limiting stream erosion is called ___________.

Back 76

Base level

Front 77

__________ is the boundary line separating adjacent, stream drainage basins.

Back 77

Divide

Front 78

__________ is the release of water vapor to the atmosphere by plants.

Back 78

Evapotranspiration

Front 79

__________ is the sediment transport mode in which sand grains alternately bounce up into the water column, sink, and roll or skip along the bottom before bouncing again.

Back 79

Saltation

Front 80

Which components of the hydrologic cycle describes the recharge of water to the soil and groundwater systems?

Back 80

Infiltration

Front 81

A ________ is formed by abrasion of rocks by windblown sand.

Back 81

ventifact

Front 82

Which one of the following statements is correct?

Back 82

Alluvial fans typically rim desert valleys; playas form in the lowest, interior parts of the valleys.

Front 83

Inselbergs are...

Back 83

bedrock hills in a highly eroded desert landscape.

Front 84

Assume that the central slip face of a barchan dune slopes downhill toward the east. What is the direction of the prevailing wind?

Back 84

west to east

Front 85

________ dunes result from persistent, onshore winds in certain coastal areas.

Back 85

Parabolic

Front 86

Which one of the following is a low-latitude desert characterized by high atmospheric pressures and descending air masses (not rain shadow deserts).

Back 86

Sahara Desert, Northern Africa

Front 87

A ________ is an intermittent stream channel in the dry land areas of the western United States.

Back 87

wash

Front 88

Deposition of glacial rock flour from blowing winds is responsible for ________.

Back 88

loess deposits

Front 89

Which one of the following will effectively limit further deflation in a given area?

Back 89

Desert pavement

Front 90

________ refers to the "bouncing" mode of sand transport in a windstorm or stream.

Back 90

Saltation

Front 91

Which one of the following statements about sand dunes is correct?

Back 91

A dune migrates in the direction of inclination of the slip face.

Front 92

________ dunes are long, high, sand dunes parallel with the prevailing wind direction.

Back 92

Longitudinal

Front 93

Rainshadow deserts are common in ________.

Back 93

the dry valleys of eastern California and Nevada.

Front 94

How is desert pavement formed?

Back 94

Runoff and deflation carry off the silt and clay, leaving coarser particles behind.

Front 95

Most dry lands lie between ________ degrees north and south of the equator.

Back 95

20 and 30.

Front 96

Which of the following best describes the climatic factors that cause low latitude deserts like the Sahara in Africa?

Back 96

Cool, dry air aloft is descending; surface winds are blowing toward the equator.

Front 97

___________ dunes are long, sand ridges that develop at right angles to the prevailing wind direction.

Back 97

Transverse

Front 98

A ____________ is an intermittent lake on the floor of a desert basin.

Back 98

Playa

Front 99

In dry lands, _____________ is the covering of coarse particles left on the surface after the finer particles are carried away by wind and running water.

Back 99

Desert Pavement

Front 100

____________ are rocks with one or more flat surfaces abraded by windblown sand.

Back 100

Ventifact

Front 101

The leeward slope of a sand dune is also known as the ______________.

Back 101

slipface

Front 102

___________ are solitary, crescent-shaped dunes whose tips face downwind.

Back 102

Barchan

Front 103

___________ describes the complex, internal stratification or bedding in a sand dune.

Back 103

Crossbedding

Front 104

Deposits of windblown silt are called __________.

Back 104

Loess

Front 105

Detailed explanation of the hydrologic cycle.

Back 105

Step 1.) The hydrologic cycle begins when solar energy heats which equals molecular motion energy of water. Molecules move faster, this stretches the hydrogen bond and breaks, thats when evaporation occurs LIQUID TO GAS (this is called evaporation), it carries the heat with it, this is called latent heat.

Step 2.) Phase Change is GAS TO LIQUID, Humid air rises, as it rises the air cools adiabatically (whenever gas expands it cools, the molecules move slower), cools to Dew point - which is the temp of condensation, once it gets to dew point, condensation occurs.

Front 106

A description of the characteristics of the young, mature, old age, and rejuvenated stream/valley; and why one will change into another.

Back 106

Evolution of streams depends on stream behavior.

YOUNG STREAM -

starts high above base level (mountains), high gradient, fast (high velocity), the high energy gives high velocity. this will erode down, since it erodes down a narrow v-shaped canyon will form.

Looking at it from the side:

straight flow pattern stream will fill the valley floor. because it eroded straight down, young streams have falls and rapids, if it has falls it is always a young stream.

Front 107

OLD AGE STREAM:

Back 107

at base level, low gradient, low velocity, erodes only sideways, very wide valley cause nearly circular meanders and a huge (wide) flood plain.

Important features:

Ox Bow Lake: c-shaped lake, neck of meander gets narrower, cuts through, erodes path where the neck used to be and becomes a c-shaped lake.

Natural Levee:

ridge of gravel parallel to the river, every time river floods coarse sediment will be deposited every year, a thicker and thicker layer is deposited at the edge we get a wedge of sediment.

Front 108

MATURE STREAM:

Back 108

above base level, medium gradient, medium velocity, medium streams erodes down and sideways, **when gradient goes down, the velocity goes down, the fast moving water tries to pass slow moving water by passing on sides, which erodes the sides. Gently sloped valley walls, start to have meanders- not straight stream because of erosions on sides. do not fill valley floor, you ha a flood plain. Might have rapids but it would be small.

Front 109

rejuvenated stream/valley; and why one will change into another.

Back 109

A river is said to be rejuvenated when the base level that it is flowing down to is lowered. This can happen for various reasons.

A rejuvenated stream: shape of valley does not match age of river, because uplift occurred.

Front 110

A discussion of the process for geyser eruptions.

Back 110

water boils when the interior pressure is greater then exterior.

some kind of tube structure underground, near a heat source, water at the bottom has an elevated boiling point, cause of higher pressure and weight above it. when near boiling point, the column expands, some of the bubbles comes out this is called outflow, the boiling point goes down and lowers the present temperature and then explodes and loses water until its full again, then the process happens again, the time for another geyser eruption is varied.

Front 111

A discussion of the causes of a rain shadow desert.

Back 111

On one side of the mountain, wet weather systems drop rain and snow. On the other side of the mountain—the rain shadow side—all that precipitation is blocked.

one side of desert has lots of rain, while the other side doesn't, you need a mountain range, humid air is forced up mountain range, air is rising, temp goes down, humidity goes up, it will rain on the windy side of the mountain, the air comes over the mountain then it sinks, the temp goes up, humidity goes down, now you have a warm dry feeling.

Front 112

A discussion of the process that changes freshly fallen snow into a moving glacier.

Back 112

there needs to be a zone of accumulation, as the snow accumulates it compacts under its own weight, it breaks off the tips of snowflakes it becomes firn, continues to be compacted, then it becomes ice, a thin layer of ice.

Until it starts to move its not glacial, a minimum glacier can be 50 meters tall. Zone of fracture is 50 meters.

Front 113

A description of the formation and appearance of 5 erosional glacial features.

Back 113

Cirques - semi circular gauge in the side of mountain, formed by plucking, ripped out of glacier by frost wedging.

Tarn - pond in a cirque, when melt water fills the base of cirque.

Arete - knife edged ridge, when two glaciers stop

horn - pyramid shaped mountain, formed by three or more cirques

glacial trough (valley) - u-shaped valley, ice erodes everywhere it touches.

hanging valley - bottom of valley is above main valley floor, the surface area is greater so erodes faster.

Fjord - long narrow deep bay, bay cause full of salt water.

Louch - long narrow deep lake.

Front 114

A description of the formation and appearance of 5 depostional glacial features.

Back 114

2 kinds of Drifts: drift is glacial sediment.

Drift 1 is called Till: unsorted, different size of pieces.

Drift 2 is called Stratified drift: layered, carried of glacier by water.

Moraine: Feature can be terminal (at the end of a glacier), lateral (along the sides of a glacier), or medial (formed by the emerger of lateral moraines from contributary glaciers).

Outwash plain: flat feature when water washes out leaves a whole layer of drift.

is a flat layer of drift left by receding glacier in it you will find:

Kame: symmetrical pile of drift, drift filled depression on top of glacier as it melts it goes to the ground.

Kettle: round, deep pond, kettles will die when they ultrify.

Esker: sinuous ridge of drift (snakelike)

Drumlin: stream-lined hill, made out of drift, reworked drift opposite of rouch moutonne.

Front 115

A discussion on the causes of desert formation at the 30th latitude.

Back 115

Subtropical desert happens at the 30th latitude it is caused by world-wide wind. Equator is warm, and a low pressure system because air rises, weight lifts until it gets to the tropopause, where troposphere ends and stratosphere begins, approximately 7 miles from surface and forces air to the side, air goes back down becomes warmer and drier.

Front 116

An open ended essay using any 7 terms related to ground water, and how each is related to the others. A list of definitions will not be accepted.

Back 116

At the end of the hydrologic cycle water will either flow in a river or sink down in the ground and infiltrate. If it does that, if it sinks into the ground it has to be porous (full of holes) it is also permeable (how easily water can flow through it) for it to sink down. If the ground is porous and permeable, water can flow through it, we call that an aquifer. If it is not porous and permeable, that is an aquitard. The groundwater that we use for drinking water is stored in the zone of saturation. Above that is the zone of aeration, soil and rocks. Their pores are at times partly filled with water and air, and aeration occurs when the air and water mix or come into close contact. The top of the saturation zone is called the water table, where the water pressure head is equal to the atmospheric pressure.