Weathering Vocabulary

Front 1

Weathering

Back 1

The various mechanical and chemical processes that cause exposed rock to decompose.

Front 2

Erosion

Back 2

The process by which the surface of the earth is worn away by the action of water, glaciers, winds, waves.

Front 3

Sand dune

Back 3

A ridge of sand created by the wind; found in deserts or near lakes and oceans dune.

Front 4

Suspend

Back 4

To keep from falling sinking, forming a deposit, as if by hanging,to suspend solid particles in a liquid.

Front 5

Leeward

Back 5

Pertaining to, situated in, or moving toward the quarter toward which the wind blows.

Front 6

Windward

Back 6

Pertaining to, situated in, or moving toward the quarter from which the wind blows.

Front 7

Slip face

Back 7

The steeply sloping leeward surface of a sand dune. Also known as sandfall.

Front 8

Abrasion

Back 8

A scraped spot or area; the result of rubbing or abrading:abrasions on his leg caused by falling on the gravel.

Front 9

Deflation

Back 9

The act of deflating or the state of being deflated.

Front 10

Zone of saturation

Back 10

The ground below the water table

Front 11

Zone of aeration

Back 11

Region in the ground in which pore spaces are filled with air.

Front 12

Bedrock

Back 12

Unbroken solid rock, overlaid in most places by soil or rockfragments.

Front 13

Water table

Back 13

The planar, underground surface beneath which earth materials, as soil or rock, are saturated with water.

Front 14

Porosity

Back 14

the ratio, expressed as a percentage, of the volume of the pores or interstices of a substance, as a rock or rock stratum, to the total volume of the mass.

Front 15

Permeability

Back 15

The capability of a porous rock or sediment to permit the flow of fluids through its pore spaces.

Front 16

Exfoliation

Back 16

To split or swell into a scaly aggregate, as certain minerals when heated.

Front 17

Frost action

Back 17

The weathering process caused by cycles of freezing and thawing of water in surface pores, cracks, and other openings.Alternate or repeated cycles of freezing and thawing of water contained in materials; the term is especially applied to disruptive effects of this action.

Front 18

Root action

Back 18

A part of the body of a plant that develops, typically, from the radicle and grows downward into the soil, anchoring the plant and absorbing nutriment and moisture.

Front 19

Oxidatin

Back 19

The deposit that forms on the surface of a metal as it oxidizes.

Front 20

Hydrolysis

Back 20

Chemical decomposition in which a compound is split into other compounds by reacting with water.

Front 21

Acid rain

Back 21

Precipitation, as rain, snow, or sleet, containing relatively high concentrations of acid-forming chemicals, as the pollutants from coal smoke, chemical manufacturing, and smelting, that have been released into the atmosphere and combined with water vapor: harmful to the environment.

Front 22

Chemical weathering

Back 22

Any of the various weathering processes that cause exposed rock to undergo chemical decomposition, changing the chemical and mineralogical composition of the rock:Oxygen and acids are agents in chemical weathering.

Front 23

Physical weathering

Back 23

Any of the various weathering processes that cause physical disintegration of exposed rock without any change in the chemical composition of the rock:Collision between rock surfaces can cause mechanical weathering.

Front 24

Mass movement

Back 24

An organized effort by a large number of people, especially those not forming part of the elite of a given society, to bring about pervasive changes in existing social, economic, or political institutions, frequently characterized by charismatic leadership.

Front 25

Creep

Back 25

The gradual movement downhill of loose soil, rock, gravel, etc.;solifluction.

Front 26

Mudslide

Back 26

The rapid downward movement of a large quantity of saturated earth

Front 27

Avalanche

Back 27

A large mass of snow, ice, etc., detached from a mountain slope and sliding or falling suddenly downward.

Front 28

Slump

Back 28

Any mild recession in the economy as a whole or in a particular industry.

Front 29

Landslide

Back 29

The downward falling or sliding of a mass of soil, detritus, or rock on or from a steep slope.