Distinctive Landscapes

What is a landscape?

What is a landscape?

An area of land with a particular appearence

Relief

The way the landscape changes in height

Upland areas

Areas high above sea level. They are often mountainous

Lowland areas

Areas not very high above sea level. They are often flat

Characteristics of the Upper Course of a river

Steep valleys, narrow/shallow channel, high bedload

Characteristics of the Middle Course of a river

Gentle sloping valleys, floodplains, wider channel, more suspended sediment

Characteristics of the lower course of a river

Open valleys, floodplains, very wide & deep channels

Features of the upper course of a river

V shaped valleys, interlocking spurs, waterfalls, gorges

Features of the middle course of a river

Meanders, river cliffs, slip off slopes

Features of the lower course of a river

Ox-bow lakes, floodplains, levees

Traction

Rocks transported in a river via rolling

Saltation

Rocks transported in a river via bouncing

Suspension

Rocks transported in a river via carrying

Solution

Rocks dissolved in a river

Hydraulic action

Erosion from the force of water

Abrasion

Erosion from the river’s load

Attrition

Erosion of material in the river by other material in the river

Biological weathering

Weathering from mosses, animals, people, tree roots…

Chemical weathering

Weathering from the acid in rain, particularly affecting non-resistant rocks

Mechanical weathering

Freeze-thaw weathering

Sliding (mass movement)

Sudden movements of rock/soil along saturated soil

Slumping (mass movement)

Movement of saturated permeable rock along impermeable material

Rock falls (mass movement)

Free-fall movement of rocks from gravity, increased by mechanical weathering

Igneous rock examples

Granite, basalt

Sedimentary rock examples

Clay, sandstone, limestone

Metamorphic rock examples

Slate, schist, gneiss, marble

Igneous rock

Rock formed from magma (either at depth or on the surface)

Sedimentary rock

Rock formed from material carried by rivers to the sea and deposited in beds

Metamorphic rock

Formed by heat/pressure, when mountains are formed or tectonic plates collide

Glaciated upland areas

U-shaped valleys

Non-glaciated upland areas

V-shaped valleys

Glaciated lowland areas

Rolling, fertile plains

Non-glaciated lowland areas

Flat land, rivers

Drainage basin

An area of land that is drained by a river and its tributaries

Source (river)

Where a river starts

Channel (river)

What a river flows in

Watershed (river)

The boundary between two drainage basins

Tributary (river)

A small stream or river which leads into a larger river

Confluence (river)

The point where two rivers join

Mouth (river)

The end of a river where it meets the sea

Discordant coastline

Where bands of different rock type are perpendicular to the coast

Backwash

When water runs back down the beach

Swash

When water is washed up the beach

Beach

An accumulation of eroded material transported and deposited by the sea

Sea wall

Giant concrete walls to prevent erosion of coasts

Groynes

Wood planks perpendicular to the coast preventing longshore drift

Breakwater

Offshore concrete walls to break incoming waves

Rock armour

Large boulders placed along a coastline

Beach nourishment

Sand and shingle added to beaches from elsewhere

Sand dunes

Large amounts of sand left on the coast to absorb the energy of waves

Managed retreat

Letting erosion do its thing