Weathering And Erosion

Erosion Definition

Erosion Meaning: When the broken pieces of Rock remain where they are, the action of wind, water and melting ice takes some of these small pieces of rocks to new places. This process is called Erosion. Erosion is a set of processes that result in landscape shaping when the rock pieces are brought back to lower levels by blowing winds, running water and the effects of gravity.

The small pieces of rock that we see around the beaches and sides of the rivers have origins in height in the mountains. Erosion is the beginning of a larger process. It comprises four other phases known in the order detachment, driving, transport and deposition. The pieces of rock and sediment that start traveling with erosion have to settle somewhere. Once they do, this is called deposit.

What are some examples of erosion?

Liquid water is the main erosion agent on Earth. Rain, rivers, floods, lakes and the ocean carry pieces of land and sand and slowly carry down sediments. Rain produces four types of soil erosion: splash erosion, slick erosion, rug erosion and ravine erosion.

What are examples of ageing and erosion?

Erosion Definition Geography:

Example of alteration: the wind and the water cause the rupture of small pieces of rock on the side of a mountain. Weather can occur due to chemical and mechanical processes. Erosion is the movement of particles far from their source. Example of erosion: the wind moves away from small pieces of rock from the side of a mountain.

Types of Erosion

Erosion is the process of wearing away or transporting materials like soil, rock, or sediment from one location to another. There are several types of erosion, each with distinct characteristics and causes. The main types of erosion include:

1. Water Erosion: a. Sheet Erosion: Occurs when a thin, even layer of soil is removed from a large area due to rainfall or surface runoff. b. Rill Erosion: Involves the formation of small, shallow channels or grooves in the soil due to concentrated water flow. c. Gully Erosion: More severe than rill erosion, it results in deeper and wider channels or gullies formed by concentrated water flow. d. Streambank Erosion: Happens along the banks of rivers and streams, where the water’s force wears away the soil, causing the banks to collapse.
2. Wind Erosion: Wind erosion occurs when strong winds pick up and transport loose soil particles, leading to the loss of fertile topsoil and the formation of sand dunes in arid regions.
3. Glacial Erosion: Glaciers, as they move, can erode the landscape by plucking and abrasion. Plucking involves the removal of rocks and sediments, while abrasion occurs as the glacier’s movement grinds away at the underlying bedrock, forming features like U-shaped valleys.
4. Coastal Erosion: Coastal erosion is caused by the actions of waves, tides, and currents. It can result in the gradual wearing away of shorelines, cliffs, and beaches, leading to changes in coastal landforms.
5. Soil Erosion: Soil erosion can occur through various mechanisms, including water, wind, or human activity. It is a major concern for agriculture, as it can deplete fertile topsoil, reducing crop productivity.
6. Chemical Erosion: Chemical erosion, also known as chemical weathering, involves the breakdown of rocks and minerals due to chemical reactions. This type of erosion can alter the composition and appearance of rock formations over time.
7. Thermal Erosion: Thermal erosion occurs in permafrost regions when rising temperatures cause the melting of ice-rich soils. As the ice melts, it weakens the soil structure, leading to slumping and erosion of the landscape.
8. Biological Erosion: Biological erosion is caused by the activities of living organisms, such as plant roots breaking up rocks or burrowing animals moving sediment and soil.
9. Mass Wasting (Mass Movement): Mass wasting involves the downhill movement of large amounts of soil, rock, or debris due to gravity. Types of mass wasting include landslides, rockfalls, and mudslides.

Each type of erosion is influenced by various factors, including climate, geological conditions, human activity, and vegetation cover. Understanding these erosion processes is important for land management, conservation, and addressing environmental challenges.

What is weathering?

Weathering is the natural process by which rocks, minerals, and other Earth materials are broken down, dissolved, or otherwise altered over time due to various environmental factors and forces. It is a fundamental step in the cycle of erosion and the creation of sediment that can later be transported by erosional processes. Weathering can occur through physical, chemical, and biological mechanisms. Here’s an overview of these types of weathering:

1. Physical Weathering (Mechanical Weathering):
   • Physical weathering involves the mechanical breakdown of rocks and minerals without altering their chemical composition. This process is primarily driven by physical forces and environmental conditions.
   • Common physical weathering mechanisms include:
     • Frost action: Repeated freezing and thawing of water in cracks or pores within rocks can cause them to break apart.
     • Exfoliation: Expansion and contraction of rocks due to temperature changes can lead to the outer layers of rocks peeling away.
     • Abrasion: The wearing down of rocks by friction from wind, water, ice, or other moving particles.
2. Chemical Weathering:
   • Chemical weathering involves the alteration of rocks and minerals through chemical reactions. This process can change the mineral composition of the material.
   • Common chemical weathering processes include:
     • Hydrolysis: The reaction of minerals with water, which can result in the breakdown of minerals and the formation of new minerals.
     • Oxidation: The reaction of minerals with oxygen in the presence of water, leading to the rusting of iron-bearing minerals.
     • Carbonation: The dissolution of minerals like calcium carbonate (found in limestone) when they come into contact with acidic water.
     • Biological weathering: Some plants, fungi, and microorganisms can release organic acids that facilitate the breakdown of minerals in rocks.
3. Biological Weathering:
   • Biological weathering is the breakdown of rocks and minerals due to the actions of living organisms.
   • Plant roots, for example, can grow into cracks in rocks, exerting physical pressure and facilitating the infiltration of water. Burrowing animals can also help break down rocks through their activities.

Weathering plays a crucial role in the Earth’s geological processes, as it contributes to the formation of soils and sediments, the release of nutrients, and the shaping of landscapes. It often works in conjunction with erosion, as the products of weathering are transported and deposited by erosional processes, ultimately affecting the Earth’s surface and the development of landforms over time.

What is the difference between weathering and erosion?

Weathering and erosion: In an erosion, weathered material of the earth’s surface is removed by the movement of water, wind, gravity or ice, while in a weathering rocks and minerals are experienced by exogenous forces, decomposition, or destruction. These exogenous forces such as frost, solar radiation, organisms and atmospheric gases can act on or near the earth’s surface.

Not only solid rocks, but also loose rocks are subject to weathering. The weathering processes depend on the climate and create the prerequisite for removal and transport as well as the formation of sedimentary rocks.

Weathering and Erosion Examples

Erosion

The term erosion is used in the German-speaking region for removal. This can be linear or area-like.

• The most significant process is the removal by water (fluviale erosion). This depends on the difference in altitude of the rock base, its erosion, on the existing vegetation and the quantity and distribution of the water.
• The glacial erosion is the process of abducting through glaciers.
• Also by wind, loose material is removed. This is the Aeolian Erosion.
• Through the sea, marine erosion takes place: sea surf and current are such forces.

Weathering

In general, “seaming” is not only used for the natural decomposition of rock, but also for wood or metal. Geologists do not do this because they continue to differentiate there: organic materials rot and corrode metals. Vert rotten materials and weathered rocks form the soil for the most part.

Weathering takes place through physical, chemical and biogenic influences, whereby the separation is not always easy:

• Frost, salt, temperature, pressure, … are physical forces.
• Acids, dissolution, … are chemical forces.
• Rocks are also blown up by plants, which is an example of physical-biotic weathering. Even rodents, mushrooms or ants can dissolve rocks. Chemical-biotic weathering is found in lichens on rocks, which secrete the acids that attack the rock.

What are Erosion of Soil?

Soil erosion

Soil erosion is the progressive removal of layers of soil from the surface of the soil, through detachment and transport of individual particles by various physical agents such as water, wind and ice. It concerns to a variable extent the entire Earth’s surface  in contact with the Earth’s atmosphere . e Soil erosion is therefore a predominantly natural, i.e. physiological, process of the earth system, although in some cases it can also be caused or favored by the clumsy action of man on the territory, for example through  deforestation , overbuilding,  urbanization  etc.
Soil erosion occurs simultaneously with or subsequent to alteration  generated by chemical or physical processes. Soil erosion can have negative effects on human activities, in particular on agriculture  because it can take away useful land for cultivation, but not only that: the turbidity of  sediment- laden waters  can alter some  ecosystems .
The most serious situation that soil erosion can reach is that of accelerated erosion, in which due to anthropic or non-anthropic causes (reduced plant cover, increase in the slope of the land, prolonged drought) the removal of portions of soil has a greater velocity than the sedimentation of new soil. Following this situation there is a progressive removal of the ground until the bare rock underneath is discovered.

Soil erosion by water is also called runoff. This type of soil erosion develops gradually following some stages: firstly there is widespread erosion, which occurs due to the film of water that wets the surface along the line of maximum slope; subsequently the so-called erosion by rivulets is generated, in which the erosion is concentrated in the furrows generated by the previous erosion and into which the water flows ( runoff ); finally there is furrow erosion, in which the water has managed to dig furrows into the ground and the phenomenon settles inside them.