FINAL Bolded Content Flashcards
(137 cards)
1
Q
definition:
an area that drains all precipitation received as a runoff or base flow (groundwater sources) into a particular river or set of rivers
A
drainage basin
2
Q
T/F: Drainage systems are interconnected networks of streams that form a variety of patterns
A
True
3
Q
is the Grand River tributaries dendritic?
A
Yes
4
Q
What drainage pattern is tree-like?
A
Dendritic
5
Q
T/F: the smaller the flood, the less often it is expected to occur
A
false - the larger the flood, the less often it is expected to occur
6
Q
definition: an estimate of how often a flood of a given size can be expected to occur
A
recurrence interval
7
Q
4 type of floods:
R
F
I-J
D-F
A
Regional
Flash
Ice-Jam
Dam-Failure
8
Q
Which type of flood occurs unexpectedly?
A
Flash flood
9
Q
T/F: most regional floods are seasonal
A
true
10
Q
T/F: extended wet periods any time of the year can create saturated soils, after which any additional rain runs off into streams until capacities are exceeded
A
true
11
Q
What are some factors influencing flash flooding?
R-I
S-C
T
A
rainfall intensity and duration, surface conditions, topography
12
Q
T/F: Flash floods can occur with little warning and can be deadly because it produces a rapid rise in water levels and can have a devastating flow velocity
A
True
13
Q
T/F: Mountainous regions are the least susceptible to flash flooding
A
false - they’re the MOST
14
Q
T/F: urban regions are not able to have flash floods
A
false - they can since the surface area has a high percentage of impervious roofs, streets and parking lots, where runoff is very rapid
15
Q
Which type of flood is this?
“As the level of a stream rises, it will break up the ice and create ice floes that can pile up on channel obstructions, even creating a dam across the channel.”
A
Ice-Jam Floods
16
Q
definition: mounds built on the banks of. river to increase the volume of water the channel can hold
A
Artificial Levee
17
Q
Name that dam!
Built to store floodwater and then let it out slowly, lowering the crest by spreading it out over a longer time
A
flood-control dams
18
Q
definition:
altering a stream channel to speed the flow of water and prevent it from reaching flood height.
A
Channelization
(e.g. clearing a channel of obstructions or dredging a channel to make it wider and deeper, or constructing a floodway channel that’s designed specifically to divert floodwaters away from urban centres)
19
Q
T/F: a non-structural approach to flooding is floodplain management
A
true - identifying high-risk areas so that appropriate zoning regulations can be implemented to minimize development and promote more appropriate land use
20
Q
_______ represents the largest reservoir of fresh water that is readily available to humans
A
Groundwater
21
Q
A zone where all of the open spaces in sediment and rock are completely filled with water
A
zone of saturation
22
Q
water within the zone of saturation is called ______
A
groundwater
23
Q
the upper limit of the zone of saturation is called _____
A
the water table
24
Q
the area above the water table that includes the capillary fringe and the belt of soil moisture is called the ___ __ ________
A
zone of aeration
25
what's another term for the zone of aeration?
Vandose Zone
26
why does groundwater move slowly?
because the water is in between particles - takes alot more time to move down hill!
27
How do you prepare a map of the water table?
1) locations of wells and elevations are plotted
2) map of water-table contour lines at regular intervals
3) groundwater flow lines can be added
remember that groundwater flows perpendicular to the water table
28
________ is the percentage of the total volume of rock or sediment that consists of pore spaces
porosity
29
the _______ of a material is its ability to transmit a fluid
permeability
30
permeable rock strata or sediment that transmit groundwater freely are called _____
aquifers
31
the ______er the slope, the faster the water table moves
the steeper the slope, the faster the water table moves
32
how is the hydraulic gradient determined?
dividing the vertical difference between the recharge and discharge points BY the length of flow between these points
(e2-e2)/d
33
impermeable layers that hinder or prevent water movement are termed_______
aquitards
34
______ are intermittent hot springs or fountains in which columns of water are ejected with great force at various intervals, often rising 30-60m into the air
Geyser
35
a ____ is a hole bored into the zone of saturation
well
36
Term:
whenever water is withdraw from a well, the water table around the well is lowered
drawdown
37
depression int he water table, roughly conical in shape
cone of depression
38
the term _____ applies to any situation in which groundwater under pressure rises above the level of the aquifer
artesian
39
ares of the world have landscapes that have been shaped by the dissolving power of groundwater - ____ topography.
a type of topography formed on soluble rock (especially limestone) primarily by dissolution - sinkholes, caves, underground drainage
Irregular terrain, depressions...
karst
40
a ____ is a thick mass of ice forming on land by compaction and re-crystallization of snow
glacier
41
an _________ is a very large, thick mass of glacial ice flowing outward in all directions form one or more accumulation centers
ice sheet
42
where are the two present-day ice sheets? they're actually called ________ ice sheets
Antarctica and greenland - continental ice sheets because they're so big (10% of Earth's land area combined)
43
along portions of the Antarctic coast, glacial ice flows into bays, creating features called ___ _____
ice shelves
44
___ ________are large, relatively flat masses of floating ice that extend seaward from the coast but remain attached to the land along one or more sides
ice shelves
45
covering some uplands and plateaus are masses of glacial ice called ___ _____
ice caps
46
______ _______ form when one or more alpine glaciers emerge from he confining walls of mountain valleys and spread out to create a broad sheet in the lowlands at the base of the mountains
Piedmont glaciers
47
granular, re-crystallized snow
firn
48
thickness of ice and snow > 50m - the weight is sufficient to fuse firm into a solid mass of interlocking ice crystals: _____ ice
glacial ice
49
______ ________ involves movement within the ice. ice behaves as a brittle solid until the pressure on it is equivalent to the weight of about 50m of ice. once that load is surpassed, ice behaves as a plastic material and flow begins.
Internal deformation
50
____ ____ occurs when the ice mass slips across the ground
basal slip
51
in ___ ___ _____, sediment and fractured rock deform by friction the overriding glacier
soft bed deformation
52
zone of ______ include the ice in the uppermost zone, carried along piggyback style by the ice below
fracture
53
T/F: like the water in a river, not all of the ice in the valley moves at an equal rate
true
54
T/F: average velocities vary considerably from one glacier to another
true
55
____ include the rapid advance of glaciers (speeding up for a relatively short time before returning to he normal rate again)
surges
56
the _____ line separates the zone of accumulation from the zone of ablation
equilibrium line
57
glaciers erode the land primarily in two ways: ____ and a_____
plucking and abrasion
58
____ is the process by which pieces of bedrock are lifted out of place by a glacier
plucking
59
____ is the grinding and scraping of a rock surface by the friction and impact of rock particles carried by ice, water and wind
abrasion
60
when the glaciers eventually recede, the valleys of tributary glaciers are left standing above the main glacial trough and are termed _____ valleys
hanging valleys
61
at ht ahead of a glacial valley is a very characteristic and often imposing feature called a ____
cirque
62
a _____ is a steep-sided inlet of the sea formed when a glacial trough was deeply scoured then partially submerged
fjord
63
sinuous sharp-edged ridges, French for knife-edge
arêtes
64
sharp pyramid-like peaks
horns
65
____ _____ is a term used for sediments of glacial origin, no matter how, where or in what shape they were deposited
glacial drift
66
Glacial drift is dived by geologists into two main types:
1. ___ is materials deposited directly by the glacier
2. ____ ____ are sediments deposited by glacial meltwater
till, stratified drift
67
____ is deposited as glacial ice melts and releases its load of rock fragments
till
68
T/F: ice cannot sort the sediment it carries
true
69
earlier ice ages are indicated by deposits called ______, a sedimentary rock formed when till becomes lithified
tillite
70
boulders found int he till or lying free not he surface are called ____ ______s if they are different from he bedrock
glacial erratics
71
a _____ is the most common term for landforms made primarily of till
moraine
72
this type of moraine erodes the sides so large quantities of debris are added to the glacier's surface as rubble
lateral moraine
73
____ moraines are created when two alpine glaciers coalesce to form a wider valley glacier but the ice does not mix
medial
74
___ moraine is a ridge of mainly till making a former position of the front of a glacier
end moraine
75
a _____ moraine is the gently rolling layer of till deposited as the ice front advances, then recedes
ground moraine - also has a levelling effect!
76
a ____ is a streamlined, teardrop-shaped hill mainly composed of till
drumlin
77
Stratified drift is sorted according to the size and weight of the particles. Because ice is not capable of such sorting activity, these materials are not deposited directly by the glacier as till but instead reflect the sorting action of _____ meltwater
glacial meltwater
78
outwash plains and valley trains commonly are pockmarked with basins or depressions known as ____
kettles
79
a ____ is an irregularity shaped hill or mound composed of sand, gravel and till that accumulates in a depression on a retreating glacier, and is then deposited not he land surface with further melting of the glacier
kame
80
an ____ is a sinuous ridge composed largely of sand and gravel deposited by a stream flowing in contact with a glacier near its terminus
esker
81
___ aka arid. one of two types of dry climates; the driest of the dry climates.
desert
82
___ aka semi-arid - a marginal and more humid variant of the desert that separates it from bordering humid climates
steppe
83
the dry region that results from air descending the leeward side of the mountain, with the mountain effectively cutting the leeward side off from he sources of moisture is the _____ ____
rain shadow
84
running _____, although infrequent, does most of the erosional work in deserts
water
85
the main role of wind is in the ______ and _____ of sediment, which creates and shapes the ridges and mounds we call dunes
transportation and deposition
86
windblown sand moves by skipping and bouncing along the surface - a process termed ______
saltation
87
(a way that wind erodes) ____, the lifting and removal of loose material by wind
deflation
88
a _____ is a depression excavated by wind in easily eroded material
blowout
89
a desert _________ is a layer of coarse pebbles and gravel created when wind removes the finer material
desert pavement
90
abrasion sometimes creates interestingly shaped stones called ______, with the side of the stone exposed to the prevailing wind is abraded, leaving it polished, pitted and with sharp edges
ventifacts
91
wind erosion is responsible for creating much larger features, called _____, a streamlined, wind-sculpted ridge, oriented parallel to the prevailing wind
yardang
92
___: mounds and ridges of sand from the wind's bed load
dunes
93
____: extensive blankets of silt that were once carried in suspension
loess
94
T/F: snad begins to accumulate wherever an obstruction across the path of the wind slows its movement
true
95
a ___ is a hill or ridge of wind-deposited sand
dune
96
____ are sand accumulations that usually assume consistent patterns
dunes
97
Name that dune:
solitary sand dunes shaped like crescents and with their tips pointing downwind
Barchan dunes
98
Name that dune:
where prevailing winds are steady, sand is plentiful, and when vegetation is sparse or absent, dunes form a series of long ridges separated by troughs and oriented at right angles to the prevailing wind
transverse dunes
99
Name that dune:
common in many arid regions where the extensive surface of wavy sand is sometimes called a sand sea
transverse dunes
100
Name that dune:
long ridges of sand that form parallel to the prevailing wind where sand supplies are moderate
longitudinal dunes
101
Name that dune:
where vegetation partially overs the land, resembles barchans except their tips point into the wind
Parabolic dunes
102
Name that dune:
Sahara and Arabian deserts: isolated hills of sand that exhibit a complex form
star dunes
103
___ are the deposits of windblown silt that lack visible layers, are generally pale yellow-brown, and are capable of maintaining a nearly vertical cliff
loess
104
the vertical distance between trough and crest is the wave ____
height
105
the horizontal distance separating successive crests is the wave____
wavelength
106
the wave _____ is the time interval between the passage of two successive crests at a stationary point
wave period
107
the height, length and period that are eventually achieved by a wave depend on three factors:
1. the wind ____
2. the length of ___ the wind has blown and
3. the ____ (the distance that the wind has travelled across open water)
1. the wind speed
2. the length of time the wind has blown
3. the fetch
108
eventually, a critical point is reached where waves grow so tall that they topple over, forming ______ called whitecaps
breakers
109
the waves also undergo a gradual change to _____, which are lower and longer and can carry a storm's energy to distant shores
swells
110
the sea waves we watch from the shore are often a mixture of ____ from faraway shores and waves created by local ____
swells, winds
111
T/F: in open waters it's the wave energy that moves forward, not the water itself
true
112
beneath the surface, the circular motion rapidly diminishes until, at a depth equal to about half the wavelength, the movement of water particles becomes negligible - called wave ____
the wave base
113
T/F: as long as a wave is in deep water, it is unaffected by water depth
true
114
T/F: the wave begins to "feel bottom" at a water depth equal to about half its wavelength (wave base)
true
115
____ - the scouring and grinding action the water armed with rock fragments - is probably more intense in the surf zone than in any other environment
abrasion
116
____ _____ is the bending in direction of waves as they enter shallow water
wave refraction
117
because of wave refraction, wave impact is concentrated against the sides and ends of _____ that project into he water, whereas wave attack is weakened in ____
headlands, bays
118
T/F: most waves reach the shore at an angle, so the uprush of water from each braking wave (swash) is oblique
HOWEVER, returning backwash is straight down the slope of the beach
ture
119
The zigzag pattern made by the swash and backwash (of water and sediment transport) along the beach is called beach _____, and can transport sand and pebbles thousands of metres each day
beach drift
120
oblique waves also produce turbulent ______ currents within the surf zone that flow parallel to the shore and move substantially more sediment than beach drift
longshore currents
121
___ are controlled by the gravitational attraction between Earth and the Moon, with a smaller influence from the sun
tides
122
_____ current is the term used to describe the horizontal flow of water accompanying the rise and fall of the tide
tidal current
123
a distinctive feature sometimes observed in action sandy tidal deposits is ______ cross-bedding
herringbone
124
when caves on opposite ends of a headland unite, a ___ ____ results
sea arch
125
eventually the arch falls in, leaving an isolated remnant, or ___ _____ on the wave-cut platform
sea stack
126
the ___ zone is permanently submerged underwater and lies below the average depth at which waves touch the sea bottom during normal fair-weather conditions
offshore zone
127
the ____ zone lies landward of the offshore zone. it is characterized by constant day-to-day sediment transport in shallow water, between the fair weather wave base and the low-tide mark
shoreface zone
128
a ___ is an area of unconsolidated sediment that can be loosely considered to extend from he shore face to the seaward limit of permanently vegetated land
beach
129
a ____ is an elongated ridge of sand that projects from he land into the mouth of an adjacent bay - the end int he water commonly hooks landward in response to the dominant direction the longshore current
spit
130
the term ____ bar is applied to a sandbar that completely crosses a bay, sealing it off from the open ocean - tends to form across bays where currents are weak, allowing a spit to extend to the other side
baymouth bar
131
a _____ produces a ridge of sand that connects an island to the mainland or to another island
tombolo
132
___ islands are a low, elongate ridge of sand that parallels the coast
barrier islands
133
structures built to protect a coast from erosion or to prevent the movement of sand along a beach are known as ___ ______
hard stabilization
134
___ are usually built in pairs and extend into the ocean at the entrances to rivers and harbours
jetties
135
a ___ is a barrier built at a right angle to the beach to trap sand that is moving parallel to the shore
groin
136
a ___ is a hard stabilization thing built parallel to the shoreline to protect boats from the force of large breaking waves by creating a quiet water zone near the shoreline
breakwater
137
a ____ is designed to armour the coast and defend property from he force of breaking waves
seawall
