Distinctive Landscapes

• Abrasion


  The scraping, scouring or rubbing action of materials being carried by moving feature such as rivers, glaciers or waves, which erode rocks
• Attrition


  A reduction in the size of material
• Backwash


  The movement of water down the surface of a beach through the beach sediment as a result of gravity after a wave has broken
• Bedding planes


  Within a sedimentary rock, these represent the points where layers of sediment accumulates; they may later form horizontal weaknesses within the rock along which water may penetrate them
• Biological processes


  Processes that result from the action of living organisms, whether plant or animal in nature
• Cave


  A natural underground chamber or a series of passages, especially opening to the surface; may also refer to the extended cracks at the base of a cliff
• Chemical processes


  Processes that result from chemical reactions and interactions
• Corrasion


  An alternative word for abrasion
• Corrosion


  An alternative word for solution
• Eutrophication


  The process of excessive nutrients (particularly nitrogen and phosphates) building up in water sources, usually because of leaching and surface runoff
• Evapo-transpiration


  The process by which water is transferred from the land to the atmosphere by evaporation from surfaces e.g. lakes, and by transpiration from plants
• Floodplain


  The flat area of land either side of a river channel forming the valley floor, which may be flooded
• Freeze-thaw cycle


  The daily fluctuations of temperature either side of freezing point; when repeated they contribute to physical weathering
• Gabions


  Metal cages filled with rocks which can form part of a sea defence structure or be placed along rivers to protect banks from erosion, an example of hard engineering
• Geology


  The study of rocks and their formation, structure and composition
• Geomorphic processes


  Processes that result in a change in the shape of the Earth; from 'geo' meaning the earth and 'morph' meaning to change shape
• Glacial periods


  Historic cold periods associated with the build-up of snow and ice and the growth of ice sheets and glaciers
• Glacial processes


  Processes resulting from the action of ice, often in the form of glaciers or other landforms but can also involve the cold temperatures associated with glacial periods
• Glacier


  A frozen river of ice formed by snow and ice accumulating in mountains or polar areas, which can even form on the top of volcanoes e.g. Iceland
• Headland


  An area of land that extends out into the sea, usually higher than the surrounding land; also called a point
• Hydraulic action


  An erosive process which involves the pressure of water hitting a surface, compressing air in any cavities which exist, and resulting in the removal of rock fragments over time
• Ice age


  A glacial episode characterised by lower than average global temperatures and during which ice covers more of the Earth's surface
• Igneous


  When referring to rocks, this means rocks formed within the interior of the Earth, and shaped by heat
• Impermeable


  A surface or substance that doesn't allow water to pass through it
• Inter-glacial periods


  Historic warm periods in-between glacial periods where conditions were much the same as they are today
• Joints


  Vertical cracks within a rock, such as limestone, which result from the natural shrinking of the rock over time as it was formed; these may form weaknesses allowing water to penetrate the rock
• Landform


  A recognisable feature of the Earth's surface
• Levees


  Raised banks along a river that help to reduce the risk of flooding
• Longshore (littoral) drift


  The movement of sediments along a stretch of coastline as a result of wave action
• Meanders


  A sinuous bend in a river that results from the flow of water along it
• Mechanical processes


  Physical processes that act mechanically on a substance
• Metamorphic


  Rocks that have been changed as a result of heat and pressure being applied to them over long periods of time
• Natural


  Existing in, or derived from, processes that do not involve humans
• Natural arch


  An arch-shaped structure formed as a result of natural processes within a rock feature such as a cliff
• Natural landscape


  A landscape that is the result of natural processes and has not been shaped or changed by human activity
• Nunatak


  A peak that sticks up through an overlaying layer of ice; the top of the peak is often affected by frost erosion
• Ox-bow lake


  A horse shoe-shaped lake that forms when a meander is separated from the main river channel as a result of erosion
• Oxidation


  A chemical reaction between a substance and the air; it can change its appearance or weaken it
• Parent rock


  The upper layer of rock on which the soil layer forms
• Plunge pool


  A pool formed at the base of a waterfall