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A mild acid formed when water and carbon dioxide chemically combine in the atmosphere and soil.This acid is a very important component in the development of cave decorations (speleothems). |
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chemical weathering [image] |
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| The process that changes the chemical makeup of a rock or mineral at or near the Earth’s surface. Chemical weathering alters the internal structure of minerals by the removing and/or adding elements. Compare with mechanical weathering. |
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| The slowest form of mass movement, measured in millimeters or centimeters per year and occurring on virtually all slopes. cross bed A bed made up of particles dropped from a moving current, as of wind or water, and marked by a downward slope that indicates the direction of the current that deposited them. |
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| The process by which particles of rock and soil are loosened, as by weathering, and then transported elsewhere, as by wind, water, ice, or gravity. |
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| A physical weathering process in which concentric layers of rock are removed from an outcrop. |
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| The perpetual movement of water among the mantle, oceans, land, and atmosphere of the Earth. |
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Water that melts down through rocks and hardens and pushes the rocks apart and makes an ice wedge. |
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| A downslope movement of rock and soil over a failure surface and under the influence of gravity. Slumps, earthflows, debris flows and debris slides are examples. |
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| A general term used for any downslope movement of rock, soil, snow or ice under the influence of gravity. Includes: Landslides, creep, rock falls and avalanches. |
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mechanical weathering [image] |
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| A general term applied to a variety of weathering processes that result in the particle size reduction of rock materials with no change in composition. Frost action, salt crystal growth and pressure relief fracturing are examples. Also known as physical weathering. |
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| A type of mass movement composed mainly of clay-size materials with a high enough water content that it flows readily. |
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| A chemical reaction in which substances combine with oxygen. For example, the combination of iron with oxygen to form an iron oxide. |
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| The source from which a given soil is chiefly derived, generally consisting of bedrock or sediment |
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| the soil that is remaining after the soluble elements have been dissolved |
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| All loose, unconsolidated earth and organic materials above bedrock that support plant growth. |
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| the washing away of soil by water |
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| A vertical strip of soil stretching from the surface down to the bedrock and including all of the successive soil horizons. |
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The B-horizon of soil that contains clay and iron oxides washed from the topsoil. |
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| the upper, outermost layer of soil, usually the top 2 to 8 inches. It has the highest concentration of organic matter and microorganisms and is where most of the Earth's biological soil activity occurs |
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The transportation of soil is made up of 3 stages. The first stage is weathering, or the breakdown of materials. The second stage is erosion, or the transport of materials. The third stage is deposition, or the dropoff of material. |
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| The process by which exposure to atmospheric agents, such as air or moisture, causes rocks and minerals to break down. This process takes place at or near the Earth's surface. Weathering entails little or no movement of the material that it loosens from the rocks and minerals. |
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