Erosion by glacier
a mass of ice and snow abruptly dislodging from a mountain face
avalanche
water from rain that the ground cannot absorb
the eroding action of windblown sand
abrasion
term for regions of the earth's surface where limestone is exposed and abundant
karst
the type of weathering that changes the chemical composition of the mineral
chemical
a thick ice sheet that slowly moves under its weight
glacier
the source of a river
headwaters
the most important effect of wind erosion
deflation
gently sloping coast covered by sand or pebbles
beach
the breakdown of rocks by physical forces
physical weathering
a glacial valley that has filled with seawater
fjord
any of the streams that feed into a river at various points along its course
tributaries
the breaking or peeling away of rock in layers
exfoliation
calcium carbonate deposited in caves by water droplets
dripstone
the period of widespread glaciation
Ice Age
an accumulation of till left by a retreating glacier
moraine
the process in which running water carves a channel in the ground that cannot be repaired by ordinary cultivation
gullying
planting alternating strips of erosion prone crops and erosion - preventing crops
strip - cropping
the winding looping curves of a river
meanders
a mass of calcium carbonate that forms hanging from the ceiling
stalactite
a low hill formed when a glacier overruns a moraine
drumlin
the natural ridges along a rivers edge
levee
a type of sand dune that is in the shape of a crescent
crescentic
the eastern and western drainage divides of the Mississippi River drainage basin
The Eastern Continental Divide; The Great Divide
these large funnel-shaped depressions in the ground form when a cavern underground collapses. Florida, Texas, and Alabama have the highest occurrence of these in the U.S.
sinkhole