Geography Formations Questions (almost everything)

Memorise these and you'll get free 4 marks every time

Formation of a waterfall - 4 marks

• Hard rock overlies soft rock.

• The water erodes the soft rock faster than the hard rock through hydraulic action.

• This undercuts the hard rock which will make the soft and hard rock collapse creating an overhang.

• This will form a plunge pool and it will also make the waterfall retreat upstream. (repeated)

Formation of a meander - 4 marks

• The outside of the river bend has fast - flowing water.

• This will cause erosion such as hydraulic action and abrasion towards the sides of a river bank which creates river cliffs. (2 marks)

• The inside of the curve has slow - flowing water which means deposition will occur, when this happens there will be a slip - off slope.

Formation of an oxbow - lake - 4 marks

• The fastest flow of the river happens of the outside of the meander.

• This causes the neck of the meander to narrow.

• During a flood, hydraulic action might cause the neck of the meander to break, making a straight channel overtime.

• Due to deposition, it cuts off the old meander.

Formation of a Levee - 4 marks

• When a river overtops during a flood, deposition occurs. (2 marks)

• Heaviest materials get deposited nearest to the river bank.

• This process is repeated until a levee is formed.

Formation of interlocking spurs (4 marks)

• As a river moves downwards through upper course, it cuts downwards through abrasion (2 marks).

• The river bends and winds to avoid areas of hard rock.

• Continued vertical erosion means that there will be some parts of the land sticking out.

Formation of Cyclones (4 marks)

• Warm seawater over 27 celsius around the tropics.

• High level of condensation and evaporation of water vapour creates cumulonimbus cloud formations.

• It also provides enough energy for strong wind.

• The strong Coriolis effect close to the equator drives and spins the strong winds away from the equator.