geo physical landscape🌍

• what is sedimentary rock ?

  formed when layers of sediment from rivers are compacted together over time
• what are the three sedimentary rocks ?

  1. chalk
  2. clay
  3. carboniferous limestone
• what are the characteristics of chalk ?

  harder than clay, forms escarpments, lowlands, coastlines, is permeable, younger and porous
• what are the characteristics of clay ?

  forms wide and flat valleys because its easily eroded, impermeable, soft, crumbly and weak
• what are the characteristics of carboniferous limestone ?

  permeable, with underground rivers and caves, resistant
• what are metamorphic rocks ?

  formed from sedimentary rocks heated and compressed during tectonic activity
• what the two metamorphic rocks ?

  1. slate
  2. schists
• what are characteristics of slate ?

  heated mud or shale, hard, resistant, easily split into thin slabs as its formed in layers
• what are the characteristics of schist ?

  formed by further metamorphosis of slate, splits easily to small flakes, upland, impermeable
• what are igneous rock ?

  formed by cooling, crystallising deep magma and lava which are very resistant to erosion
• what are the igneous rocks ?

  1. granite
• what are the characteristics of granite ?

  very hard, resistant, forms upland landscapes, unevenly spread joints, impermeable
• what was uk like 345-280 million years ago ?

  uk was in the tropics, sea levels where also high so carboniferous limestone ended up forming warm and shallow areas now the uplands
• what are examples of upland areas ?

  peak district and south wales
• how has active volcanos shaped uk landscape ?

  erupted magma which then formed to create igneous rocks such as granite
• how has plate collisions shaped uk landscape ?

  mountain ranges were formed by rocks folding and uplifting due to plate collisions. These collisions generated intense heat and pressure leading to the formation of metamorphic rocks
• what are the three weathering processes ?

  chemical, mechanical, biological describe the breakdown of rock
• what are post glacial river processes ?

  at the end of glacial periods, rivers get much bigger and powerful as ice flows into them. Thus eroding the landscape with force creating troughs, truncated spurs and hanging valleys
• what are slope processes

  include mass movement and soil creep
• what are climatological processes ?

  climate affects how physical processes happen eg freeze thaw weathering
• how does human acivity of agriculture result in distinctive landscape ?

  1. forest has been cleared to make space
  2. hedgerows and walls have been installed to mark out field boundaries
  3. drainage ditches installed to make land dry enough to be farmed
• how has human activity of forestry result in distinctive landscape ?

  uk mainly used to be deciduous woodland but large areas have been replaced by coniferous trees for timber. These look unnatural and once felled look bare
• how has human activity of settlement result in distinctive landscape ?

  drainage patterns affected by concrete and rivers diverted through underground channels
• what is freeze thaw weathering ?

  mechanical weathering that happens in cold conditions when water fills a crack in a rock and freezes. It causes the crack to get wider and deeper. When the ice melts it repeats again and water fills the crack. This process of thawing can cause erosion
• what is chemical weathering ?

  the chemical composition of a rock changes. When climate is warm and wet carbonic acid is created from carbonic dioxide that dissolves part of the rocks made from calcium carbonate
• what is biological weathering ?

  living things breakdown a rock. Plant roots can biologically weather a rock
• what is mass movement ?

  large movement of soil and rock down the slope of a hill by weathering or gravity
• what are rockfalls ?

  when cliff materials break and crumble down the cliff
• what are slides ?

  when material moves down a slope in a straight line
• what are slumps ?

  when material move down a slope in a curve
• what are the characteristics of constructive waves ?

  1. not very tall
  2. sea is calm
  3. longer wavelength
  4. low frequency
  5. deposit material onto coastlines due to strong swash and weak backwash
• what are the characteristics of destructive waves ?

  1. taller
  2. more frequent
  3. high frequency
  4. cause most erosion on coastlines
  5. have a stronger backwash meaning they drag more material away from coastline
• how do destructive waves erode coastlines ?

  hydraulic power, abrasion and attrition
• what are joints and faults ?

  rocks with lots of these are softer rocks and they will be eroded easily
• what is chemical weathering of hydrolysis ?

  water reacts with rock and gets more resistant to weathering
• what is the chemical weathering of oxidation ?

  O2 reacts with iron minerals to form rust which weakens the rock
• what is chemical weathering of carbonation ?

  carbonic acid reacts with calcium carbonate in limestone and chalk to form calcium bicarbonate which is soluble and washed away in solution
• what is a concordant coastline ?

  have layers of soft rock and then a layer of hard rock then a layer of soft rock. Sea waves hit only one type of rock when they meet at the coast. A sand dune is normally at the top
• what is a discordant coastline ?

  alternating chunks of hard rock and soft rock at 90 degrees. The waves will hit both hard and soft rock when they meet the coast.
• how are bays formed ?

  when the sea meets the areas of soft rock and headlands with hard rock