UK landscapes

• The physical landscape of the UK is varied and includes upland and lowland areas.
• The landscape has been shaped by glaciation, rivers and rock types.
• Rocks can be classified into three main groups: igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic.
• These three different rock types can be found in distinct areas of the UK.
• Igneous rocks are a result of volcanic activity in the past, when Britain was close to a plate boundary.
• Some of the igneous rocks are due to lava erupting at constructive plate boundaries.
• When the lava reached the surface, it cooled and solidified to form basalt rock.
• An example of this is the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland.
• Other rocks are formed by hot molten magma beneath the Earth's surface cooling and solidifying as an intrusive rock under the ground, such as granite.
• This is later exposed as the rocks above are weathered and eroded at the Earth’s surface.
• These rocks start as either igneous or sedimentary rocks and are crystallised under the intense heat and pressure conditions to form rocks such as slates, schists, and marble.
• Over many millions of years, successive layers of sediments accumulate.
• Igneous basalt rocks are found at Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland.
• These layers of sediments are compressed by the weight of the deposits above, into sedimentary rocks.
• These rocks are very hard in nature and are often used as roof material.
• Sedimentary rocks form in layers, known as bedding planes.
• The movement of continental areas of the globe is explained by the modern theory of plate tectonics.
• Limestone and chalk come from the remains of dead plant, animal and marine species and are rich in calcium carbonate and contain fossils.
• Metamorphic rocks are rocks that have been changed in shape and form by intense heat and pressure at a plate boundary or along a fault line.
• The existence of these rocks is evidence that Britain was at a different latitude compared to today.
• Many of these rocks were formed over 300 million years ago, in warm tropical seas during the carboniferous period.
• When sand is compressed it forms sandstone.
• Igneous rock is a type of rock formed by the cooling of magma or lava.
• When mud is compressed it becomes clay.
• Sedimentary rocks are made up of small particles of sand and rock, which have been transported by the wind, rivers and ice and are usually deposited on lake or seabed.