FINAL

Stream Capacity

maximum load that a stream can carry

Stream Deposition

deposition of sediment by a stream, occurs when stream capacity is exceeded

Stream Load

weight of solid matter carried by a stream, includes suspended materials

Bed Load

material that bounces on the bottom of stream channels

Alluvium

broken up rock material deposited by water, describes alluvial deposits

Alluvial Fan

fan-like alluvial deposits at the base of change in slope

Oxbow Lake

meander river channel cut-off occurring during flood stage

Delta

deposition at point where stream flows into an ocean or lake

Floodplain

where channel capacity is exceeded, sediment is deposited over adjacent land areas

Natural Levee

created during high water periods with larger deposits near the primary stream channel

Braided Stream

excessive bed load that exceeds stream capacity and is deposited in the stream channel

Percentage of world's population living within 93 miles of a coastline

44%

Percentage of Earth's water is ocean

97%

Percentage of Earth's land area covered by glacial ice

10%

Percentage of Earth's freshwater found in glacial ice

70%

Glaciers

large mass of ice that is on land and shows evidence of present or past motion, occur at every latitude and elevation

Glacier Stages

Initial Stage — snowfields

Over time — layer upon layer thickens and hardens into a crystalline material

Final stage — glacier begins to move

Importance of Glaciers

Indicator of climate change, large amounts of fresh water, impact of past glaciation (soils, landforms, drainage)

Alpine Glaciers

ice flowing in narrow ribbons down mountain valleys

Arete (Alpine)

knife-like ridge produced by parallel intersecting glacial trough walls

Cirque (Alpine)

bowl-shaped depression near the glacial accumulation zone

Tarn (Alpine)

lake left in a cirque after glacial retreat

Horn (Alpine)

three or more adjacent cirques leaving a pointed peak

Crevasse (Alpine)

deep, open crack in glacial ice surface

Continental Glacier

glacier that covers much of a continent or large island, accounts for huge reserves of freshwater

Worldwide Continental Glacier Examples

Greenland and Antarctica

Icebergs

large floating masses of ice, 90% volume below the sea level, hazardous to shipping

Ice Shelf

thick layer of ice that extends above the water and below sea level

Largest Ice Shelf

Ross Ice Shelf (200,000 sq miles)

Ice Shelf that fell last year

Conger Ice Shelf

Loess Soil (Continental)

sand-like soil left behind by receding glaciers

Drumlin (Continental)

smooth, elongated hills, resemble inverted spoon

Eskers (Continental)

winding ridges composed of sand and gravel, remnants of streams beneath glacial ice

Kame (Continental)

steep sided hill, where sand and gravel accumulated in ice crack or fissure

Kettle (Continental)

block of stagnate ice melts leaving a pitted area, often a lake

Modified Drainage Systems

evidence that the Missouri River once flowed north into Lancaster sound

Pleistocene Glaciation

alternating series of glacial and interglacial periods occurring from 2.5 million to 11,700 years ago

Louis Agassiz

Swiss naturalist in the mid 1800's that first noted the impact of continental glaciation

Primary Energy Source of Waves

Wind

Swells

large waves when there is stronger winds

Wave Pattern

Oscillation (includes wave length, height, period)

Breaker Wave

collapse of wave crest as wave approaches shoreline

Refraction

occurs as wave begins to drag on the bottom of an irregularly shaped coastline (beach and longshore drift)

Beach Drift

transport of sediment in a zig-zag pattern

Longshore Drift

transportation of eroded material along the coastline, can cause erosion

Wave Cut Terrace

narrow flat area found at the base of a sea cliff or along the shoreline

Sea Cave

type of cave formed primarily by the wave action of the sea

Sea Arches

arch with an opening underneath

Sea Stack

steep vertical column of rock near the coast

Coastal Deposition

lower wave energy points of deposition

Beach

strip of land covered with sand at the edge of a body of water

Spits

deposition bar or beach landform off coasts or lake shores

Bay Mouth Bar

forms when a sand spit closes off a bay by attaching to a headland adjacent to the bay

Tombolo

ridge of sand that connects an island to the mainland

Beach Conservation

Foredunes (plant grasses)

Steel walls

Beach nourishment

Concrete walls

Jetti

Tide Occurrences

two high tides and two low tides per 24 hours

Ebb Current

movement of tidal current away from the shore (seaward)

Flood Current

movement of a tidal current toward the shore (landward)

Spring Tide

strongest tide, two times a month caused by alignment of sun and moon with gravity

Neap Tide

lowest tide, when sun and moon are at right angles, two times a month

Tidal Variations

depends on ocean size, coastline shape, orientation relative to sun and moon

Place with Highest Tides

Bay of Fundy (14 meters or 45 feet high)

Polders & Fenlands

drained marshlands for farmland, 20% of the Netherlands are on reclaimed, pumped-out land

Ria Coast

rise of sea level or crustal sinking due to flooding

(coasts of New England, UK, France, Spain)

Fiord Coast

associated with glacial troughs

(Norway, British Columbia, southern New Zealand, southern Chile)

Barrier Island Coast

recently emerged coastal plain, very gradual slopes, includes lagoons and tidal inlets vulnerable to overwash

(coasts of US Atlantic, Gulf)

Delta Coast

major river flows into an ocean and sediments are deposited

(Nile, Mississippi, Tiber)

Volcanic Coast

created by lava flows, very rugged

(Hawaii, California, Oregon coastlines)

Coral Reef Coast

coral-marine invertebrates secrete calcium carbonates (Pacific, east coast of Australia - Great Barrier Reef)

Categories of Coral Reef Coasts

form atolls, fringing reefs, and barrier reefs

Eolian Landforms

wind erodes, transports, and deposits materials

Deflation

lifting and removal of loose sand and dust particles

Abrasion

sand blasting by wind particles, polished rocks

Wind/Sand Transportation

sand creep, dust storms, and sandstorms

Haboob

large dust storms (Phoenix and Lubbock)

Saltation

movement of particles by a series of short bounces along the surface of the ground

Dunes

accumulation of sand shaped by wind and capable of movement over the underlying ground

Dune Factors

sand supply, wind velocity, variability in wind direction, vegetative cover, characteristics of underlying surface

Barchan Dune

crescent-shaped, occurs in inland deserts

Parabolic Dune

u-shaped, occur along coastlines

Transverse Dunes

perpendicular to wind direction, occur with abundance source of sand

Longitudinal Dunes

elongated dune, parallel to the prevailing wind direction

Star Dunes

irregularly shaped, formed from sporadic wind direction

Foredunes

sand deposits running parallel to the shore of an ocean

Desertification

process in which relatively stable and fertile land is destabilized and eventually becomes a desert, overgrazing animals create marginal vegetative covers

Grus/Reg

rock-like desert

Soil

natural surface layer containing living matter and capable of supporting life

Amount of agricultural land lost each year due to urbanization

1.6 to 3.3 million hectares (3.9 to 8.1 million acres)

Characteristics of Soil

color, texture, structure, and pH

Soil Color

visually apparent property of soil;

Black — organic matter

Red — iron and aluminum oxides

White — silicates and salt

Soil Texture

proportion of sand, silt, and clay

Soil Structure

way soil aggregates

Soil Acidity & Alkalinity (pH)

the more calcium, sodium, potassium there is, the more alkaline the soil

(pH of 7 is the best, neutral soil)

Soil Orders

Alfisols

Andisols

Aridisols

Entisols

Gelisols

Histosols

Inceptisols

Mollisols

Oxisols

Spodosols

Ultisols

Vertisols

Entisol

recent origin, little to no horizon development, weak

Aridisol

arid climate

Alfisol

deciduous forest soil, most prominent soil in OHIO

Ultisol

extensively weathered, mid-latitude forest

Gelisol

permafrost

Andisol

volcanic material