Erosion, Deposition & Topographic Maps

dune

A hill or ridge of sand piled up by the wind

glacier

A large mass of moving ice and snow on land

creep

the slow downhill movement of weathered rock and sediment material

mudflow

the flow of a mass of mud or rock and soil mixed with a large amount of water

landslide

a slide of a large mass of dirt and rock down a mountain or cliff

loess

A wind-formed deposit made of fine particles of clay and silt. Very fertile.

Erosion

The process by which wind, water, ice, or gravity transports soil and sediment from one location to another

Deposition

Process in which sediment is laid down in new locations.

Gradient

an incline or slope; the rate of incline

Floodplain

an area along a river that forms from sediments deposited when the river overflows its banks

Delta

A landform made of sediment that is deposited where a river flows into an ocean or lake

alluvial fan

A fan-shaped deposit of sediment formed when a stream's slope is abruptly reduced

Weathering

The breaking down of rocks and other materials on the Earth's surface.

Topography

the arrangement of the natural and artificial physical features of an area.

contour lines

lines that connect points of equal elevation

contour interval

the difference in elevation from one contour line to the next

index contour line

bold or thicker lines that generally occur every fifth contour line

topographic map

A map that shows the surface features of an area.