Unit: Weathering, Erosion,

and Deposition
Aim: What is chemical
weathering?
 What is weathering?
Weathering is the chemical and physical
breakdown of rocks into sediments at or
near the Earth’s surface.

Sediments – tiny pieces of rock

Weathering occurs when rocks are

exposed to air, water, pressure changes,
and living things.
 What is weathering?
Earth’s landscape features and soils can
be traced back to the weathering of
exposed rocks.

Weathering also can affect manmade

structures such as buildings and roads.
What is chemical weathering?
The breakdown of rock through a change
in mineral or chemical composition.

Forms of chemical weathering:

Oxidation
Effect of water
What is oxidation?
Oxidation is when
iron combines with
oxygen to make iron
oxide (rust)

Iron in rocks can

combine with oxygen
to form red, brown,
and yellow pigments.
Branded Iron
Formations
Surface of
Mars
Why is the Statue
of Liberty green?
Egypt New York
How does water affect weathering?

Water can dissolve most rock materials.

Acids from decaying organic matter mix

with ground water to aid in dissolving
rocks.

All rain water is slightly acidic which

results in acid rain.
How does water affect weathering?
Acid Rain
Chemicals from factories, automobiles, etc.
are released into the air (sulfur and nitrogen
compounds).
Winds will carry those chemical compounds to
an area.
Clouds form.
Chemicals fall out of the air with
precipitation.
Acid rain will break down rocks, manmade
structures, plants/trees.
How does water affect weathering?

Water can combine with carbon dioxide

to form carbonic acid.

Carbonic acid can easily dissolve rocks

such as limestone and marble
(Carbonation).

The dissolving of limestone and marble

can result in sink holes and caves.
Aim: What is physical
weathering?
Review: Chemical Weathering

Chemical
Weathering by
Oxidation

Chemical
Weathering by
Water
What is physical weathering?
The breakdown of rock into smaller
pieces without a chemical change.
Also called Mechanical Weathering.
 What is frost action?
When water freezes, its volume expands.

When the temperature is below 0°C (or

32°F), water trapped in the cracks of rocks
freezes and expands.

This enlarges the cracks in the rocks.

Eventually, the rock will crumble.

Potholes form by frost action?
What is root action?
Process by which a
plant’s root system
grows into existing
cracks in rocks.

As the roots grow and

expand, the cracks in
the rocks get bigger.
 Unloadin
g release
Pressure
from rocks causes
cracking.

Occurs from
natural
processes
such as glacial
melting or
erosion
 What is abrasion?
Abrasion occurs when rock particles
bump into other rocks.

Abrasion occurs when sediments (rock

particles) are moved by ice, gravity, air,
and running water and come into contact
with other particles.
What is abrasion?

A characteristic of
water abrasion is
rounded particles.
Water
Abrasio
Wind
Abrasio
n
Water
Abrasio
Wind
Abrasio
Glacial
Abrasion
Aim: What are the factors that
affect the rate of weathering?
Do Now: Explain the difference
between chemical and physical
weathering.
How do temperature changes affect
weathering?
Throughout the day, rocks are heated
and cooled.
As the rock is heated by the sun, the rock
expands.
Overnight as the rock cools, it contracts.
This repeated heating and cooling puts
stress on the rock and causes it to crack.
What are the factors that affect the
rate and type of weathering?

There are five factors:

Exposure
Particle Size
Mineral Composition
Climate
Living Things
How does exposure affect the rate of
weathering?

Exposure of rocks to air, water, and

living things affect the rate and type of
weathering.

How long the rock/substance is exposed

will also determine how weathered it is.
How does particle size affect the rate of
weathering?
The smaller the rock particle, the faster
it will weather.

This is because smaller rock particles

have a higher surface area.

The greater the surface area, the greater

the volume of rock exposed to
weathering.
How does mineral composition affect
the rate of weathering?
Differential Weathering:
Rocks weather at different rates due to
differences in mineral composition.
Some minerals take longer to weather than
others.
Some minerals are more subject to chemical
or physical weathering.
How does mineral composition affect
the rate of weathering?

The mineral quartz

will not chemically
react with most of
the environment.

Quartz is subject to
physical weathering,
and it is commonly
found as sand.
How does climate affect the rate of
weathering?
Warm, moist climates
Lots of precipitation, higher temperature
More Chemical Weathering
Cool Climates
Frost action
Frost action can be very intense in moist
climates that have temperature variations.
This causes repeated cycles of thawing and
freezing.
Egypt New York
How do living things affect weathering?

Animals that burrow into the ground

create holes for water to seep into.

Lichens or mosses grow on rocks and

plants and can cause chemical
weathering.

Human activities such as building,

mining, and rock quarrying contribute
greatly to physical weathering.
 Lichen

Moss
What different types of weathering
do you see in this picture?
 Summary:
Explain how surface area affects the rate
of weathering.

What is the dominant type of weathering

in a cool, dry climate?

What is the dominant type of weathering

in a warm, moist climate?
Aim: What is Erosion? What
is Deposition?
 What is Erosion?
Transport of weathered materials.

Responsible for shaping the Earth’s

surface.

Sediments displaced from their source is

evidence that erosion has taken place.
 What is Deposition?
When sediments are released, settled, or
dropped from an agent of erosion.

Final deposition will occur mostly at

large bodies of water.
When does deposition occur?
When the velocity of a stream, winds, or
other erosional system decreases.

Factors that Affect Deposition:

Velocity of erosional system
Characteristics of sediments
 Running Water and Erosion
Running water is the most common agent
of erosion at the Earth’s surface.
Running water includes:
Rain
Streams
Rain can move clay and silt a few
centimeters
Streams can move both small and large
particles.
 Streams and Erosion
Stream:
Running water confined to a channel.

Tributary:
Smaller stream that flows into a larger
stream.
How do streams carry sediments?

Dissolved minerals are carried in

solution.

Smaller size sediments (ex. Clay) are

carried suspended in the water
Abrasion
Rounded sediments

The longer the

particle is being
carried by the
stream, the rounder
the sediments will
be.
 How does the velocity of streams
affect deposition?
The faster the stream flows, the larger
the sediment size it can carry.

If a stream flows below a certain

velocity, it will deposit the sediments it
can no longer carry.
1. If a stream is
flowing at 100
cm/s and then
slows down to 1
cm/s, what
particle will be
deposited?
Answer: Pebbles
2. If a stream is
flowing at 500
cm/s, what
particles can it
carry?

Answer: Clay,
Silt, Sand,
Pebbles, Cobbles,
and Boulders.
3. If a stream is
flowing at 1
cm/s, what
particles can it
carry?

Answer: Clay,
Silt, and Sand.
 What is a flood plain?
Flood Plain
Level plain that borders a stream that is
subject to flooding unless prevented
artificially.
When a stream floods out onto a wider
valley and deposits sediments.
Sediments are deposited in layers.
Sediments are sorted.
 What is a delta?
Delta
Deposit of sediment at the mouth or end of a
river or stream where it flows into a quiet or
still body of water such as a lake or an
ocean.
Nile River
Delta
 How does a delta form?
A delta forms when sediments are
deposited over time.

Usually forms in a fan-shape.

Sediments are deposited when the

velocity of the stream slows down.
Mississipp
i River
Delta
Aim: How do the characteristics of
particles affect deposition?

Do Now: How does a delta form?

Sediments and Rate of Deposition

Three factors affect the rate of

deposition:
Size
Shape
Density
How does size of particles affect the
rate of deposition?
When all other factors are equal:
Larger sediments settle out first when wind
or running water slow down.
Very small particles may stay suspended in
water indefinitely.
Clay suspended in water is also called mud.
Particles can stay in solution indefinitely.
How does shape of particles affect the
rate of deposition?
Shape of a particle will determine how
fast a particle will be deposited from
wind or running water.

The more flattened the particle is, the

more resistance caused by friction is
present.
How does shape of particles affect the
rate of deposition?
The flatter the particle, the slower the
rate of deposition.

The rounder the particle, the greater the

rate of deposition.
 How does the density of particles
affect the rate of deposition?
When all other factors are the same:

The higher the density of the sediment, the

faster it will settle out of air or water.

If two particles have the same size and

shape, the denser one will be heavier, and
will settle out quicker.
 Summary:
How does shape of a particle affect the rate
of deposition?
What is a delta? How does it form?
How does the size of a particle affect the
rate of deposition?
Will a rounded particle or a flat particle
settle faster? Why?
Aim: How do glaciers affect
erosion and deposition?
Do Now: Define the term
‘glacier’ in your own terms.
 What is a glacier?
Naturally formed
mass of ice and snow
that moves downhill
on land due to
gravity.
What is a glacier?
Mountain glaciers are
found in high
mountain valleys.
What is a glacier?
Ice-sheet, or
continental glaciers
cover large landmass
regions.
Antarctica and
Greenland are
examples of
continental glaciers.
Antarctica
Snow becomes Firn
 What are the features of glacial
erosion?
When a glacier moves over land, loose
rocks and other materials beneath the
glacier freeze into the ice and get picked
up by the glacier.

The rocks and loose sediments make

scratches in the rocks (glacial striations).
Glacial Striations in Central
Park
Glacial
Erratic
 What are the features of glacial
erosion?
Erratic
Rock that differs from the area that it is
currently in.
Transported and deposited in the area by a
glacier.
Can be boulder-sized.
Glacial
Erratic
 What are the features of glacial
erosion?
U-Shaped Valley
Glaciers erode both the ground but also the
walls in valleys.
The result of this erosion is a U-Shaped
Valley.
U-Shaped
Valley
U-Shaped
Valley
 What are the features of glacial
deposition?
When there is a balance between melting
and forward movement of the glacier,
the sediments are dropped.
Moraine
Sediments deposited by a glacier.
Sediments are in unsorted, unlayered piles.
A terminal moraine is when the end of a
glacier stays in one spot for a long time and
builds up piles of sediment.
Glacial
Moraine
 What are the features of glacial
deposition?
Kettle Lakes
Lake formed when a large block of ice
buried in glacial sediment melts.
Kettle
Lakes
Kettle
Lakes
 What are the features of glacial
deposition?
Outwash Plain
Broad, delta-like feature
Composed of sorted and layered sediment
deposited by running water in front of a
glacier.
Outwash
Plain
Glacial Till
 What are the features of glacial
deposition?
Drumlin
Low, long, narrow oval mount of unsorted
sediment that is formed at the bottom of
glaciers.
Characteristic of continental glaciers.
Have steep slopes.
Point in the direction from which the glacier
came from.
Drumli
n
Drumli
n
ARÊTE CIRQUE

HANGING
VALLEY
U-SHAPED
VALLEY
Review of Glacial Features!
Aim: How do waves and currents
affect erosion and deposition?
Do Now: What are some features
of glacial erosion and deposition?
 How are waves created?
Waves occur when wind blows on the
surface of lakes or oceans (wind transfers
energy to the water).

Water in the waves moves in a circular

motion.
 How are waves created?
Breaking Waves
Waves become unstable as they enter
shallow water near the shore and drag along
the bottom.
Also known as surf.

Waves and currents act as agents of

erosion where water meets land.
What causes the shore to erode?
Breaking waves cause water to rush
against the shore, which unleashes a
great amount of energy.

Waves arrive at the shore on an angle

and erode away parts of the shore that
extend into the water.

Waves move sediments.

What causes the shore to erode?

Beach erosion is happening all the time

due to longshore currents.

Large coastal storms such as Hurricanes

can cause major beach erosion.
 What is Longshore Current?
Causes sediments to move

Waves will strike the shore at an angle.

Water is moved in one direction along the

shore.

This causes sediments to move parallel to the

shore.
What is Longshore Current?
Over time, the sediments will move in a
zig-zag pattern in the same direction as
the longshore current.

When the water from the waves goes

back into the lake or ocean, it moves
straight downhill.
Where do sediments get deposited?
Barrier Islands
Long, narrow island parallel to the shore
built of sand deposited by ocean waves.
Vegetation can start to grow on this
sediment pile and create a Barrier Island.
Very common in the East and Southeast
coast of the US.
Fire
Island
 Summary:
How do waves form?

Describe how longshore currents form.

What causes sediments to be eroded along

the shore?

What is the result of deposition along the

shore?