Geography

• What is a drainage basin?


  An area of land drained by a river and its tributaries
• What is the source of a river?

  The start of the river
• What is a tributary?


  A small stream that joins a larger river
• What is the channel of a river?

  The path where the river flows
• What is a confluence?

  The point where a tributary joins a larger river
• What is a watershed?


  The edge of a river basin
• What is the mouth of a river?


  The end of the river where it meets the sea
• What are the long and cross profiles of a typical river?

  • Long profile: shows the gradient from source to mouth
  • Cross profile: shows the shape of the valley from one side to the other
• How does the gradient of a river change from source to mouth?

  The gradient starts steep and reduces with distance from the source
• What is a V-shaped valley?

  A valley formed by vertical erosion, typically found in the upper course of a river
• What is the river load?

  The material transported by a river
• What are meanders?

  Bends in a river that are mainly found in lowland areas
• What causes meanders to migrate across the valley floor?

  The erosion on the outside bend and deposition on the inside bend
• What is an oxbow lake?


  A lake formed when a meander is cut off from the river
• What are the four types of erosion in rivers?

  1. Hydraulic action
  2. Abrasion
  3. Attrition
  4. Solution
• What is hydraulic action?

  The process of water smashing against river banks
• What is abrasion in river erosion?

  The grinding of pebbles along the river bank and bed
• What is attrition?


  The process where rocks carried by the river knock against each other to become smaller and rounder
• What is solution in the context of river erosion?

  The process where water dissolves certain types of rocks, such as limestone
• What are the four types of transportation in rivers?

  1. Traction
  2. Saltation
  3. Suspension
  4. Solution
• What is traction in river transportation?

  The rolling of large heavy pebbles along the riverbed
• What is saltation?


  The bouncing of smaller pebbles along the riverbed
• What is suspension in river transportation?

  The carrying of lighter sediment within the water
• What is solution in the context of river transportation?

  The transport of dissolved chemicals in water
• What is river deposition?

  • Occurs when the velocity of the river decreases
  • Sediment is deposited when there is not enough energy to carry it
• Where does the largest amount of river deposition occur?

  At the mouth of the river
• What are interlocking spurs?


  Landforms created by a river winding around areas of resistant rock
• How do waterfalls form?

  When hard rock overhangs softer rock, leading to undercutting and retreat
• What is a gorge?

  A narrow, steep-sided valley found downstream of a retreating waterfall
• What are the ways gorges can form?

  • Melting glaciers pouring off upland areas
  • Erosion by rivers over time
• What is the slip-off slope in a river?

  The inside bend of a meander where deposition occurs
• What is the thalweg?


  The line of fastest current in a river that swings from side to side
• What happens when a river's thalweg causes erosion on the outside bend?


  It causes meanders to migrate across the valley floor
• What are floodplains and levees?

  • Floodplains: wide flat areas on either side of a river created by migrating meanders and floods
  • Levees: raised banks formed by sediment deposition
• Where is the River Tees located?

  In the North-East of England
• What is the source of the River Tees?

  In the Pennines
• What factors increase flood risk?

  Precipitation, geology, and relief
• What are the human factors that increase flood risk?

  • Urbanization: impermeable surfaces increase runoff
  • Deforestation: reduces evaporation and increases runoff
  • Agriculture: leaves soil exposed, leading to surface runoff
• What is a flood hydrograph?

  A graph showing how a river's discharge changes after rainfall
• What does lag time refer to in a flood hydrograph?

  The time that passes between peak rainfall and peak discharge