ELS4

• Mass Wasting

  The gravitational force of the earth acts directly on the loose material and the unstable slopes result the slide of the rocks and rock debris
• Mass movement


  The movement of soil, regolith, and rock under the influence of gravity
• Critical angle of repose

  The steepest angle that cohesion less slope can maintain without losing its stability
• Types of mass wasting

  • Creeps
  • Landslides
  • Flows
  • Topples
  • Slump
  • Falls
• Creeps


  • Long term process which refers to the small movements of soil or rock in different directions over time, directed by gravity
  • Speed is so slow that naked eye is not able to show the movement
• Landslides


  • Includes the rock slides, slumps (short distance moving of rocks) & sturzstroms (more horizontal movement when compared to its initial vertical drop)
  • Landslides are most common type of mass wasting
• Flows


  • Movement of the soil, dust, rock particles and bigger pebbles resembling the fluid behavior
  • Examples: avalanches, mudflows, debris flows, earth flow, lahars and sturzstroms
  • Water and air may contribute to the fluid like behavior
• Topples


  • Rocks break away and fall from a slope
• Slump


  • Slipping of the rock material
• Falls


  • Rocks fell from the steep slopes such as a cliff face
  • Movement may be contributed by the earthquakes, rain, plant-root wedging, expanding ice, among other things