Geomorphic Processes:

II. Exogenous
II. Gradation Processes –
Weathering, Mass Wasting,
Erosion, Transportation
and Deposition
Geomorphic Processes:

 Physical processes which create and modify landforms

on the surface of the earth

 Endogenous (Endogenic) vs.Exogenous (Exogenic)

Processes

 Rock Cycle 
A. Endogenous Processes
Endogenous Processes are large-scale landform
building and transforming processes
– they create relief.

1. Igneous Processes

a. Volcanism: Volcanic eruptions  Volcanoes

b. Plutonism: Igneous intrusions

2. Tectonic Processes (Also called Diastrophism)

a. Folding: anticlines, synclines, mountains

b. Faulting: rift valleys, graben, escarpments
c. Lateral Faulting: strike-slip faults

Earthquakes  evidence of present-day tectonic activity

B. Exogenous Processes
Also called Gradational Processes, they comprise
degradation and aggradation – they modify relief

 a continuum of processes – Weathering  Mass

Wasting  Erosion  Transportation  Deposition
 these processes are carried through by Geomorphic
Agents: gravity, flowing water (rivers), moving ice
(glaciers), waves and tides (oceans and lakes), wind,
plants, organisms, animals and humans

1. Degradation Processes  Also called Denudation

Processes
a. Weathering , b. Mass Wasting and c. Erosion
and Transportation
2. Aggradation Processes
a. Deposition – fluvial, eolian, glacial, coastal
Relationship:
Weathering
Mass Wasting
Erosion
and
Transportation

Together,
these processes are
responsible for
Denudation
of Earth’s surface
 WEATHERING

Weathering is disintegration and decomposition of rocks in situ –

no transportation involved  produces regolith
 More precisely, it involves the mechanical or physical
disintegration and/or chemical decomposition that fragments
rock masses into smaller components that amass on-site, before
being moved by gravity or transported by other agents
 The processes begin in microscopic spaces, cracks, joints,
faults, fractures, lava vesicles and other rock cavities

Types of Weathering: 1) Physical or Mechanical Weathering,

2) Chemical Weathering, and 3) Biological Weathering
 Physical or Mechanical Weathering
 Disintegration and decay of rocks via weather elements: high
temperatures, extreme cold and freeze-thaw cycles
 No change in chemical composition of rocks
• Exfoliation – due to thermal expansion/contraction and/or release of
pressure when buried rocks are uplifted and exposed
e.g., Exfoliation Dome (Stone Mountain, GA) and Exfoliation Sheets (Sierra Nevada)
• Frost Wedging

• Salt Wedging
 Chemical Weathering
 decomposes rocks through a chemical change in its minerals

Oxidation – important in iron-rich

rocks – reddish coloration like rust

Hydrolysis – igneous rocks have

much silica which readily combines
with water

Carbonation and Solution –

carbon dioxide dissolved in water
reacts with carbonate rocks to
create a soluble product (calcium
bicarbonate)
 Biological Weathering
– plants and animals contribute to weathering.

 Roots physically break or wedge rock

 Lichens (algae and fungi living as single unit),

remove minerals and weaken rock by releasing acids

 Burrowing animals can increase weathering.

Lichens
Talus Cones
in the Canadian Rockies
Talus – pieces of rock at bottom of a rock fall

Landslides
Can cause much destruction

A msssive 300-ton boulder blocks

a road in Southern California
La Conchita Landslide, January 10, 2005
Monterey Park Debris Flow, 1980
PCH near Pacific Palisades, November 1956
EROSION and TRANSPORTATION

– Various Geomorphic Agents, associated Processes,

and resulting Erosional Features

• Flowing Water – Fluvial Morphology

Humid regions:
Perennial streams and entrenched
channels, rapids, waterfalls, plunge
pools, potholes, meandering streams,
bank erosion, oxbow lakes, etc.
• Wind – Eolian Landscapes
deflation hollows, ventifacts, yardang, etc

• Tides and Waves – Coastal Morphology

Sea cliffs, sea caves, sea arches, sea stacks,
wave-cut beaches, etc..

• Moving Ice – Glacial Morphology

glacial troughs (U-shaped valleys), hanging

valleys, glacial lakes,.
DEPOSITION
– Various geomorphic agents, associated processes and
resulting Depositional Features
• Fluvial – Humid regions: Braided streams, sand bars, floodplains
(alluvium deposits), natural
levees, distributaries, deltas
Arid regions: Alluvial fans, bajadas,
piedmont alluvial plains, playas,
playa lakes, Salinas (salt flats)

• Eolian – Sand dunes (Barchans, Parabolic, Transverse,

Longitudinal, Star), and sand sheets

• Coastal – Sea beaches and coral reefs

• Glacial – Alpine: Glacial drifts, tills, moraines (lateral, medial, end,

terminal, recessional, and ground)
Continental: Till plains, outwash plains, drumlins, eskers,
kames, erratic