Earth's Features
What do we call a naturally occurring feature of Earth's surface, such as a mountain or valley?
Landform
Name one natural force that can change Earth's surface.
Water, wind, ice, earthquakes, volcanoes, plants/organisms
What happens during weathering?
Rock or other Earth materials are broken down into smaller pieces.
What is erosion?
The movement of weathered Earth materials from one place to another.
Which process breaks down rock?
A. Weathering
B. Deposition
C. Erosion
D. Condensation
A Weathering
A deep area of land with steep sides, often formed by erosion, is called what?
Canyon
Which can move sediment?
A. Wind
B. Moving water
C. Ice
D. All of these
D. All of these
True or False: Weathering always happens quickly.
False
Which process moves sediment?
A. Weathering
B. Erosion
C. Deposition
D. Melting
B. Erosion
Which process moves sediment?
Erosion
Name two examples of landforms.
mountains, valleys, plains, plateaus, canyons, hills, islands,
True or False: Earth's surface can change over time.
True
Tree roots grow into cracks in a rock and cause the rock to break apart. What process is this?
Weathering
Wind picks up sand and moves it across the ground. What process is occurring?
Erosion
Which process deposits or drops sediment?
Deposition
What surface feature is made when sediment builds up where a river enters a larger body of water?
Delta
large storm causes water to flow rapidly over a hillside and carry soil away. What force is causing the change?
Moving water
Water gets into a crack in a rock. The water freezes and causes the crack to become larger. What process is occurring?
Weathering
What is deposition?
The dropping or settling of sediment in a new location.
A volcano erupts and lava cools, forming new rock. Is this an example of a process that builds or breaks down Earth's surface?
Builds up Earth's surface — constructive change.
A mountain, canyon, and delta look very different. What is one reason Earth's surface has so many different features?
Different natural processes change Earth's surface in different ways.
Why can Earth's surface look different hundreds or thousands of years from now?
Natural processes continually change Earth's surface over time.
A rock breaks into smaller pieces but the pieces remain in the same location. Is this weathering or erosion? Explain.
Weathering because the rock is being broken down, but the material isn't being moved.
A river carries sediment downstream. When the river slows down, the sediment settles on the bottom. What two processes are occurring?
Erosion and deposition.
A hillside has several large rocks. Over many years:
Identify the THREE processes and explain what happens during each one.