8th Grade Science Study Guide - Test 4-Ch.4

Flashcards covering glaciers, weathering, erosion, and landforms from the notes.

What is a glacier-carved valley that has filled with seawater called?

fjord

Which natural acid, found in rainwater and groundwater, promotes chemical weathering of rocks?

Carbonic acid

What type of dune is arch shaped, with the open end of the arch pointing to the windward side?

parabolic dune

What type of weathering occurs when a plant's roots slowly thicken in a rock, causing the rock to crack?

physical weathering

What is the stripping away of a thin area of topsoil from the surface of the land?

Sheet erosion

What is the name of the triangular sediment deposit formed on a plain by a temporary mountain stream?

alluvial fan

What are large, deep grooves and scratches in rock, produced by glaciers?

Striae

What process occurs when oxygen from the atmosphere reacts with minerals like calcium, magnesium, and iron to form new compounds?

Oxidation

What are the piles of debris left behind when a glacier melts?

Moraines

What is the material carried by a stream?

load

What is a low hill formed when a glacier overruns a moraine?

drumlin

What region of land is drained by a single stream and its tributaries?

drainage basin

A large, funnel-shaped depression caused by cavern collapse

Sinkhole

One of the numerous streams that feed into a river at various points

Tributary

A large stream that carries water from the mountains to the sea

River

The source of a river (headwaters)

Headwaters

A feature formed when a sharp curve in a river is cut off from the rest of the river

Oxbow lake

The eroding action of windblown sand is called

Abrasion

A long pile of rocks deposited parallel to the shore to prevent erosion is a

Breakwater

After rock has been broken into fragments, processes like wind and running water carry away the fragments by the process of

Erosion

Suspension, saltation, and creep, in which wind transports sediments, are

Eolian

Regions of the earth's surface where limestone is exposed and abundant are called

Karst regions

A narrow, sandy island formed by a large bar off the coast of the mainland is called a

Barrier island

Ice sheets smaller than continental glaciers are called?

Ice caps

The sharp, steeple-shaped point of a mountain with three or more cirques is a

Horn

What is a natural ridge formed along the edge of a river's channel?

Levee

Which type of weathering involves the breaking or peeling away of rock into layers?

Exfoliation

As a dune forms, which side usually has a gentle slope that progresses up to the crest?

Windward side

What feature consists of a relatively large stream and smaller streams that drain into it?

Drainage system

What type of narrow, curved rock formation forms when a sea cave is continually eroded?

Sea arch

What is the main agent of chemical weathering?

Water

What is the drainage divide in the Rocky Mountains west of the Great Divide?

Continental Divide

What is the name for a vertical face of rock that forms when the sea removes rock from the base of a high ridge?

Sea cliff

What type of weathering occurs when rainwater soaks into cracks in a rock and freezes, splitting the rock?

Ice wedging

What are limestone formations that have become filled with various passageways and large caves?

Caverns

What term describes a huge hole left in the ground when an ice chunk left by a retreating glacier melts?

Kettle

What is the name for the time when one-third of the earth's land area was covered in glaciers?

Ice Age

Which type of weathering does not change the chemical composition of the minerals that compose a rock?

Physical weathering