Geology Interlude F

Landscape

The overall shape and character of the land surface in a region.

Landform

A particular land-surface shape at a location.

Uplift

(n. geology) The upward vertical movement of the Earth's surface.

Subsidence

The vertical sinking of the Earth's surface in a region, relative to a reference plane.

Relief

The difference in elevation between adjacent high and low regions on the land surface.

Downslope movement

The tumbling or sliding of rock and sediment from higher elevations to lower ones.

Erosion

The grinding away and removal of the Earth's surface materials by moving water, air, or ice.

Deposition

The process by which sediment settles out of a transporting medium.

Topographic profile

A line representing the intersection of the land surface with an imaginary vertical plane at a locality.

Geologic cross section

A depiction of contacts in the subsurface as represented by their traces on an imaginary vertical slice into the Earth.

Erosional landform

A landform that results from the breakdown and removal of rock or sediment.

Agent of erosion

Natural entities that remove material from the Earth's surface, and transport it elsewhere; examples include rivers, glaciers, and the wind.

Depositional landform

A landform resulting from the deposition of sediment where the medium carrying the sediment evaporates, slows down, or melts.

Hydrosphere

The Earth's water, including surface water (lakes, rivers, and oceans), groundwater, and liquid water in the atmosphere.

Hydrologic cycle

The continual passage of water from reservoir to reservoir in the Earth System.

Residence time

The average length of time that a substance stays in a particular reservoir.

Evapotranspiration

The sum of evaporation from bodies of water and the ground surface and transpiration from plants and animals.