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Geomorphology Lecture: 3 Notes
Exogenic Processes
The processes which occur on earth’s surface due to the influence of external forces are called exogenic
processes. Weathering, mass wasting and denudation are the major exogenic processes.

The elements of nature capable of doing these exogenic processes are termed as gradational agents. For
instance, the wind, river, glacier, waves and ground water.

Weathering
• Weathering is the breakdown of rocks at the Earth’s surface, by the action of rainwater, extremes of
temperature, and biological activity. It does not involve the removal of rock material.
• There are three major groups of weathering processes: 1) physical or mechanical; 2) chemical; 3)
biological weathering processes. All the types of weathering often go hand in hand.
How is erosion different to weathering?
• Erosion is the process by which soil and rock particles are worn away and moved elsewhere by wind,
water or ice. Weathering involves no moving agent of transport.
• Factors that affect weathering include:
 Mineralogy of parent rock
 Mafic minerals least resistant to weathering
 Felsic minerals more resistant to weathering
 Climate

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 Humid climates = more chemical weathering

 Dry climates = more physical (mechanical) weathering
 Time
 Longer the exposure time, the greater the weathering opportunity
 Number of fissures or openings
 More joints, cracks, and openings allow for greater weathering processes to occur.
 Degree of slope
 Steeper slopes encourage greater weathering of exposed rocks.

Physical weathering
Physical Weathering is the disintegration of rock mainly induced by elements of weather. It produces
smaller, angular fragments of the same rock. It is caused by the change in temperature, pressure, water
and wind.

Physical weathering is further divided into different categories. They are

1. Thermal weathering
2. Frost wedging
3. Exfoliation.

Thermal weathering
In arid and semi-arid areas, the temperature increases, heats up and expand the rocks during the day and
contract the rock materials when cooling at night. Under extreme temperature conditions, due to alternate
expansion and contraction, the rocks crack and eventually split. Thermal weathering are of two types.
They are;
(a) Granular disintegration
(b) Block disintegration.

Granular disintegration
Alternate expansion and contraction of minerals of varying properties in the
the rocks break down into small pieces . Due to this, the breakup of rocks occurs, grain by grain. This is
known as granular disintegration.

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Block disintegration
Block Disintegration occurs in rocks such as granite rock. So in the areas of jointed igneous or layered
sedimentary rocks due to the great diurnal range of temperature, the rocks may break up along the joints
and cracks into a large rectangular shaped blocks.

Salt Crystal Weathering

• Salt weathering occurs when saline solutions seep into cracks and joints in the rocks and evaporate,
leaving salt crystals behind.
• Salt crystals expand during the crystallization process and also when they are subjected to above
normal temperatures.
• The expansion in near-surface pores causes splitting of individual grains within rocks, which
eventually fall off (granular disintegration or granular foliation).
• Salt weathering is normally associated with arid climates
where strong heating causes strong evaporation and
crystallisation.
Frost Wedging
• Summer thaw of upper ‘active’ layer allows water to
migrate down through soil layers under gravity
• Water ‘pools’ against the more permanently frozen soil
layers
• Winter freeze and water expands vertically, lifting up overlying soil layers

Patterned
• Patterned ground is the distinct and often
symmetrical natural pattern of geometric shapes
formed by the deformation of ground material in
periglacial regions. It is typically found in remote
regions of the Arctic, Antarctica, and the Outback

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in Australia, but is also found anywhere that freezing and thawing of soil alternate.

Pingo
• Pingos are ice-cored hills forming in the tundra
• In time, the expanding ice forms an isolated mass
• its volume increases and it pushes up the overlying tundra
• Pingos grow at a rate of approximately one-half inch per year
• The tallest pingo in the world (in the western Arctic) is 16
stories (192 feet) high.
Exfoliation

• Over time Intrusive igneous rocks formed deep beneath the

Earth's surface are under tremendous pressure due to overlying load.
• Removal of the overlying load because of continued erosion causes vertical pressure release with the
result that the upper layers of the rock expand and fracture parallel to the surface.
• sheets of rock break away from the exposed rocks along the fractures, a process known as exfoliation.
• Exfoliation due to pressure release is also known as "sheeting".

Exfoliation due to thermal stress weathering

• Thermal stress weathering results from the subsequent expansion and contraction of rocks caused by
diurnal and seasonal variations in the temperatures.
• The surface layers of the rocks tend to expand more than the rock at depth, and this leads to peeling
off of the surface layers (exfoliation).
• This process is most effective in dry climates and high elevations where diurnal temperature changes
are drastic.

Chemical Weathering
Chemical weathering is the decomposition of rock. For example, it creates altered rock substances, such
as kaolinite (China clay) from granite. The types of chemical weathering are as follows:

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i Solution: Some soluble minerals in the rock get dissolved when come in contact with water. Over
a long period, minerals get washed away from rock and sometimes leading to the formation of
caves.

ii Oxidation: When oxygen combines with water and iron, it weakens the rock and breaks it.
Example, rusting of iron.
iii Hydrolysis: It is the chemical breakdown of a rock substance when combined with water and
forms an insoluble precipitate like clay mineral. The most common example of hydrolysis is
feldspar found in granite changing to clay.
iv Carbonation: Carbonation is the mixing of water with carbon dioxide to make carbonic acid.
This acid reacts with minerals in the rocks. This type of weathering is important in the formation
of caves.
v Hydration: It is the absorption of water into the mineral structure of the rock. Hydration expands
volume and also results in rock deformation. A good example of hydration is the absorption of
water by anhydrite, resulting in the formation of gypsum.

Biological Weathering
Biological weathering is the alteration of rock by the action of plants, animals, and man. Burrowing and
wedging by organisms like earthworms, termites, rodents, etc., help
in exposing the rock surfaces to chemical changes with the penetration of moisture and air. Human beings
by removing vegetation.

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Mass wasting
Mass wasting is the movement of a large mass of rock, soil and debris downward by the pull of gravity. It
is also called a mass movement or slope movement. It may happen suddenly or slowly.

Types of Mass Wasting

Following are the types of mass wasting:
Types of Mass Wasting
• Rockfalls and rockslides. Rockfalls occur when pieces of rock break loose from a steep rock face or
cliff. These result from the rock face being undercut by rivers or wave action. Frost wedging may also
eventually loosen large blocks, causing them to fall. The accumulation of rock debris at the base of a
steep slope is called talus.

• Rockslides usually follow a zone of weakness, such as a bedding plane or foliation plane. Separation
of the rock is more likely along these planes because of their reduced shear strength. Water also tends
to be channeled along these planes, which increases slippage. Collisions down the slope generally
break the rock mass into rubble that eventually comes to rest. If steep slopes are involved, a
fast‐moving rock avalanche may result. The rockslide or rock avalanche loses energy and speed as it
moves across more level terrain.

• Debris flows. Debris flows are defined as mass‐wasting events in which turbulence occurs
throughout the mass. Varieties of these are called earthflows, mudflows, and debris avalanches.

• When earth material moves down a hillside as a fluidlike mass, it is called an earthflow. These flows
typically occur in humid areas on steep slopes with thick, clay‐rich soil that becomes saturated with
water during storms. The earthflow usually leaves a steep scarp behind where it separated from the
hillside. Earthflows can be fast (a few hours) or slow (a few months). Velocities range from 1
millimeter per day to meters per day. Intermittent activity can continue for years as the earthflow
continues to settle and stabilize. Earthflows typically have rounded, hilly fronts. A common trigger

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for an earthflow is the undercutting of the slope by erosion from wave action or rivers or by
construction projects.

• A variety of earthflow called solifluction is the flow of water saturated earth material over an
impermeable surface such as permafrost. It occurs frequently in bitterly cold regions such as in
Alaska or Canada. Springtime temperatures thaw only the first few feet of the frozen ground (the
active layer), which becomes saturated quickly and slowly flows over the ever‐frozen permafrost
below. Solifluction can occur on even the gentlest of slopes. Not forceful enough to break apart the
surface vegetation, the migrating material drags it along like a wrinkled green rug. The soil finally
settles on level ground at the base.

• A mudflow is a liquidy mass of soil, rock debris, and water that moves quickly down a well‐defined
channel. Generally viscous and muddy colored, it can be powerful enough to move large automobiles
and buildings. Mudflows occur most often in mountainous semiarid environments with sparse
vegetation and are triggered by heavy rainfall that saturates the loose soil and sediment. They are also
the natural result of volcanic ash build‐ups on flanks of volcanoes and of forest fires that have
exposed the soil to rapid erosion. A mudflow originating on a volcanic slope is called a lahar.

• The deadliest variety of debris flow is the debris avalanche, a rapidly churning mass of rock debris,
soil, water, and air that races down very steep slopes. It has been theorized that trapped air may
increase the speed of an avalanche by acting as a cushion between the debris and the underlying
surface.

• Creep. A slow, gradual movement of soil or regolith downhill over time is called creep. Velocities
are typically less than a centimeter per year. Freezing and thawing contribute to soil creep by
progressively moving soil particles down the hill. Creep is manifested at the surface by such things as
tilted utility poles that become more out of alignment every year. Vegetation helps reduce the rate of
soil creep.

• Slump. Earth material that has moved as a unit along a curved surface is called slump. A slumped
mass of sediment is typically clay rich. Slump usually results when the geometrical stability of a slope
is compromised by the undercutting of its base, such as by wave action, a meandering river, or
construction

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