Weathering
There are many affects of weathering. Many factors influence the susceptibility of rocks to chemical and mechanical weathering. Rainfall, biologic activity, abundance of openings, composition of the rock, amount of vegetation, temperature, and tectonic settings are important factors in the weathering process. External forces like wind, water, and ice are constantly causing changes in the surface of rocks. These activities are cutting some material away while depositing other materials here and there. This process landscapes the Earth as we see it. Weathering falls into two categories, mechanical weathering and chemical weathering. Mechanical weathering is where a rock physically breaks down into pieces but does not change the
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Only the dust remains aloft long enough to be moved by the wind through suspension. There are of course exceptions to this, hurricanes and tornadoes can and do move coarse rock particles several centimeters in diameter. Although ice is solid, if flows under the influence of gravity in parts of the world where there is enough ice all year long to form a glacier. Ice moves at a very slow pace. Acting as a file, sled, and plow, ice plays a role in erosion and transport. Unlike wind and water, ice is very viscous and moves only by a laminar flow.
The Differences
The differences in weathering and erosion are as follows: Weathering involves two processes that often work together to decompose rocks. Mechanical weathering which involves physically breaking rocks into fragment with any change to their chemical make-up of its minerals within. Chemical weathering which is a chemical change in at least some of the minerals within a rock is the second process. Each one of these two processes occurs in place, there is no movement involved in weathering. It is important to remember that weathering is a surface or near surface process. When particles are loosened by one of the two processes of weathering it moves and then is called erosion. We call this erosion if the particle is moved by some flowing agent such as ice, wind, or water. Mass wasting, which is a form of erosion is movement down a slope due to gravity. Some examples of mass wasting are
Coastal erosion is the wearing away of land and the removal of beach or dune sediments by
Erosion is a process where natural forces like water, wind, ice, and gravity wear away rocks and soil. Erosion occurs at the Earth’s surface, and has no effect on the Earth’s mantle and core. Water erosion is the removal of soil particles by heavy rainfall or running water. “While the causes of erosion by water are generally natural, water erosion is usually caused by rainfall and runoff on a slope” (GEI Works Erosion Pollution). “The process of water erosion usually occurs on stream and river banks, sea shores and seaside cliffs” (Reference.com).
Mechanical weathering is when physical procedures naturally breakdown rocks into reduced pieces. Chemical weathering changes the materials that are part of a rock into new resources. Examples of chemical weathering are water, acids, and oxidation. Water is important in chemical weathering because, most substances dissolve in water and acids are also essential since they increase the rate of chemical weathering even more. Lastly, oxidation which is when an addition of oxygen to a material is applied it creates an oxide. Which is a
What type of weathering is when a chemical change occurs and a new product is created from the material that has undergone weathering.
Soil particles such as silt, clay, and sand are known as sediments and are the most significant pollutant to come from forested areas.
The tiny pieces of rocks broken off by weathering are called sediment or alluvium. Erosion is the process of transportation of this sediment which on sea cliffs sediments becomes part of the seafloor and is washed away with the waves. The larger rocks that are broken off by sediment as shown in this picture are called scree or talus; scree builds up at the bottom of cliffs as the rocks tumble down, these piles are called scree slopes or talus piles.
Broken pieces of rock would have drifted down a river, eventually the broken pieces of rock would have settled at the bottom of the water and become deposited, the deposited rocks form layers, the weight from the pieces of rock squashes the bottom layers of sediments and the water between the rocks are squeezed out, Crystals and different salts start to form which causes a type of glue- this is called cementation, eventually a sedimentary rock is formed, however this may take Millions of years.
This newly exposed rock already had small cracks - weathering and erosion took full advantage of these. Water would creep in and the freeze - thus expanding. This expansion would create more cracks. Wind and water eroded by carrying away particles from cracks like these, as well as from the surface of the rock and any other nooks. Not only did water wash particles away - it also softened the rock which made erosion easier.
Volatiles: The melting temperatures of minerals are reduced under high water pressure. Consequently “wet rocks” (rocks containing water) melt at lower temperatures that do dry rock containing identical mineral assemblages
Glaciers take part in two of the Earth's cycles hydrology and the rock cycle. When precipitation falls at high attitudes where glaciers exist, the rain or snow becomes a part of the glacier and may be stored in the glacier for up to thousands of years. Glaciers move very slow but are very important in erosion of rocks. (Lutgens & Tarbuck)
First of all chemical weathering is when there is rainwater that is able to react with mineral grains in rocks to form new minerals and also soluble salts. This type of reaction would usually occur when the water is slightly acidic. For this reaction to occur it needs water and would occur more rapidly at higher temperatures for example damp and warm climates would be the best for this reaction to occur. Chemical weathering usually happens more often in the spring because this is when it is more humid and hot outside and that is what chemical weathering needs for it to occur and also when it is usually hot or humid there will also be water.
The weather also has a large influence. Often there are winter storm surges producing higher waves, and higher sea levels, meaning higher energy erosion. In addition is increased sub-aerial denudation brought about by the heavy rain and strong winds. This often leads to increased slumping and
Metamorphic rocks are pre-existing rocks that are changed by heat and pressure. The pre-existing rock is called the parent rock, or protolith. Metamorphism occurs in these rocks when the minerals become instable. There are two types of metamorphism, contact and regional. Contact is high temperature, low pressure. It is basically a massive rock that is baked. Regional is high pressure and low temperature. Strong fabric, or layering, develops from
If this happens, the individual flakes develop strong bonds and form a solid and cohesive mass. But when it is cold, water vapors can slip to the bottom of the snowpack, forming angular crystals. These crystals tend to weaken the snow and undermine it from below (Fink).