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Erosion
The transport or
movement of
weathered rock
(broken down so it is
easier to move) form
original source (place)
to some other area.
New York State is covered with material that
formed in Canada. How did it get there?
Glaciers
Transported materials are far more common
than residual…..Why?
At some point in time, most sediments will
be moved.
Major Erosive Agents:
Running Water
GLACIERS
WIND
OCEAN CURRENTS AND WAVES
MASS WASTING (GRAVITY!)
Man (Animals)
Running Water
#1 agent of erosion (streams and rivers)
Carrying power depends on Velocity
(speed) depends on Discharge and/or
Gradient or slope.
Running Water
Larger gradient or discharge = Faster
Velocity = More Erosion and larger
sediments can be carried
Leaves sediments
round and smooth
THE GREATER THE VELOCITY OF
A STREAM…
Cut bank
on outside
of curve
Point Bar
on inside
of curve
Eventually, it takes too much energy to
keep meandering, so rivers will cut off
a bend, resulting in an OXBOW lake…
Stream Load
The stuff a stream carries is called stream
load
Carried in three ways
– Solution: dissolved particles like slats
– Suspension: fine particles or sediments of clay
or silt carried in the flow of water
– Saltation: (rolling) Sand, pebbles, and boulders
are bounced and rolled along the stream bed
Flowing water will always move faster then the
sediments
Running water will always carve out
a V-SHAPED VALLEY
SEDIMENTS ERODED BY
RUNNING WATER WILL HAVE
THESE CHARACTERISTICS
2 types:
1. Deflation – lowers the land
2. Sandblasting and Abrasion
Sandblasting and Abrasion
Wind can only lift sand to about 1 meter
high - results in “Mushroom Rock”
Frosted or Pitted sediments – rocks with
flat sides
Windward side
Leeward side
Glaciers
Slow moving “rivers” of ice
Greater volume of ice or greater slope
means a greater velocity which means it
erodes more.
An 1870 postcard view of the Rhone glacier in
Gletsch, Switzerland, contrasted dramatically
with the shrinking 21st-century version of it.
Glaciers: 2 Types
VALLEY GLACIERS: long, slow-moving,
streams of ice found in mountain areas
(high elevation) occupying former river
valleys
Polished Bedrock
-Sediments are
a bit more rough
and angular than
from other forms
of erosion
Glacial Polish
Smooth rock surfaces created
as glaciers flow over bedrock.
Glacial Pavement….
ERRATIC – EVIDENCE OF
GLACIER EROSION
Ice carries the largest sediments
A boulder-sized rock dumped by a
glacier is called an Erratic. The rock
is usually of a different type that the
surrounding rock…
VALLEY GLACIER EROSIONAL
FEATURES
Mountain ranges that were scenic to begin
with are now jagged, angular peaks
TERMINAL
MORAINE
TERMINAL
MORAINE
MARKS THE
FARTHEST
ADVANCE OF
THE ICE
Kettle Lake
Drumlins
i n
Esker pla
sh
w a
u t
Till O
Moraine-dammed
lake Glacial
Terminal Moraine Stream
Long Island
Ronkonkoma Terminal Moraine???
Harbor Hill Recessional
Moraine