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Geography > Geomorphology - Rivers > Flashcards

Geomorphology - Rivers Flashcards

(88 cards)

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1
Q

Abrasion

A

Particles of sand and silt that are carried by the river scratch and wear away the bed and sides of the channel.

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2
Q

Abstraction

A

Process whereby the watershed becomes lower and its position shifts.

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3
Q

Aerated zone

A

Part of the crust above the water table where there are open air spaces.

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4
Q

Alluvium

A

Fertile silt deposited by a river.

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5
Q

Attrition

A

Small particles bump against one another and become smaller, rounder and smoother.

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6
Q

Antecedent drainage pattern

A

After the river formed, folding and faulting occurred, but the river maintained its pattern, cutting a gorge/poort/gap through the land that has been uplifted.

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7
Q

Baseflow

A

Groundwater that seeps into a river.

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8
Q

Braided streams

A

Rivers that have multiple channels and islands of alluvial sediment in between those channels.

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9
Q

Captive stream

A

Less energetic river that was captured by the captor.

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10
Q

Captor stream

A

More energetic river that eroded through the watershed and captured another river.

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11
Q

Catchment area

A

The area that feeds water into a river system.

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12
Q

Channel flow

A

Water flowing in a river channel.

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13
Q

Confluence

A

Point where one river in the network joins another.

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14
Q

Corrosion

A

Acids in the water can dissolve the rock particles.

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15
Q

Delta

A

Depositional feature that forms when a river enters the sea or a still body of water.

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16
Q

Direct runoff

A

Water flowing over Earth in river channels.

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17
Q

Discharge

A

Amount of water flowing in a river channel past a point in a given time.

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18
Q

Drainage basin

A

An area drained by a river and its tributaries.

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19
Q

Drainage density

A

The total length of all the streams and rivers in a drainage basin (km) divided by the total area of the drainage basin (km2).

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20
Q

Elbow of capture

A

Point where capture occurred; the captive changes direction and flows into the captor.

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21
Q

Entrenched or incised meanders

A

A meander that has cut (vertically) deep into the crust.

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22
Q

Episodic rivers

A

Rivers that hardly ever flow because they are in low rainfall areas and the water table is always below the river bed.

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23
Q

Erosion

A

The wearing away and removal of weathered rock material from the river channel.

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24
Q

Exotic rivers

A

Rivers found in low rainfall areas but flow all year because they are fed by tributaries in high rainfall areas.

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25
Flood plain
Flat valley floor.
26
Gorge
Deep-steep sided valley.
27
Graded river
A river that has just enough energy to carry its load; neither erosion nor deposition is taking place resulting in a smooth, concave longitudinal profile.
28
Groundwater
Underground water.
29
Ground water flow
Water flowing through underground rocks.
30
Headward erosion
A river lengthens itself by cutting back towards its source.
31
Hydraulic action
The force of water hitting the sides and the bed of the river will break pieces off.
32
Impermeable rock
Rock which does not allow water to pass through it.
33
Indirect runoff
Water feeding into rivers through baseflow.
34
Ingrown meanders
A meander that cuts sideways into the bank so that there is slight overhang above the stream.
35
Interfluves
Ridges of high ground between individual channels.
36
Knickpoint
Sharp change in gradient along the course of the river located at the old sea level after isostatic uplift or a drop in sea level has occurred.
37
Knickpoint waterfall
A waterfall created by a sharp change in gradient.
38
Lag time
The period between maximum precipitation and peak discharge.
39
Laminar flow
Water flowing smoothly in sheets with no vertical mixing.
40
Lateral erosion
Horizontal erosion (of the sides) of a river channel making it wider.
41
Load
Broken rock particles and other materials carried by a river.
42
Levees
Raised banks of a river.
43
Lonitudinal profile
A visual representation of the gradient down which a river flows.
44
Meanders
Bends in a river channel.
45
Meander scars
Dried up ox-bow lakes.
46
Misfit / beheaded stream
Part of the river that has lost its headwaters.
47
Mouth
Point at which the river flows into the sea.
48
Non-porous rock
Rock that does not have pore spaces, therefore water cannot seep into the rock.
49
Overgraded rivers
Rivers that have excess energy and therefore erode their channels.
50
Oxbow lakes
A meander that is cut off when the river takes a new course across the neck of a meander loop.
51
Periodic rivers/ non-perennial
Rivers that only flow during the rainy season when the water table is higher.
52
Permanent base level / ultimate base level
Sea level; the lowest level to which a river will erode the land.
53
Permanent rivers / perennial
Rivers that flow all year because the river bed is deeper than the water table all year.
54
Permeable rocks
Rocks that allow water to pass through it.
55
Porous
A rock which has pore spaces into which water can seep.
56
Rapids
A resistant layer of rock causes slight changes in gradient and turbulent flow with in a river.
57
Rejuvenated river
A river receives additional energy and begins to erode vertically.
58
Riparian zone
Area alongside a river.
59
River capture
A process of one river capturing the water from another stream.
60
River cliff
Steep river bank, due to erosion, on the outside bend of a meander.
61
River network / system
A river and all its the tributaries that flow into it.
62
River terraces
Steps that show the level of the valley floor prior to rejuvenation.
63
Saltation
Smaller rocks and stones are bounced along the river bed.
64
Saturated zone
Part of the crust where all air spaces are filled with groundwater.
65
Sheet flow
Water flowing downslope in thin sheets.
66
Slip-off-slope
Gentle river bank, due to deposition, on the inside bend of a meander.
67
Source
Place where a river begins.
68
Spurs
Ridges of high ground between individual channels.
69
Strata
Rock layers.
70
Stream order
The category of a stream in a network determined by the order of the streams flowing into it.
71
Superimposed drainage pattern
A river develops a pattern on a surface that has eroded over time, so now the river is flowing on the older rocks or structures that have been uncovered.
72
Surface runoff
Rainwater flowing over the surface.
73
Suspension
Silt and very small particles are carried within the flow of the water.
74
Temporary base level
Changes in the gradient along a course of a river where vertical erosion of the river is slowed.
75
Throughflow
Water flowing through the soil.
76
Traction
Boulders and large rocks are pushed and rolled along a river bed.
77
Transpiration
Water loss from plants through pores in their leaves.
78
Tributaries
Individual river channels forming the stream network.
79
Turbulent flow
Water flowing in a bubbling motion; with lots of vertical movement.
80
Undercutting
The force of water erodes the base of the banks creating a notch and eventually causing the bank to collapse.
81
Undergraded rivers
Rivers that do not have enough energy to flow and to transport their load; they will deposit some of their load.
82
Valley within a valley
Rejuvenated river begins to erode a new valley within the old one.
83
Velocity
Speed of a river.
84
Vertical erosion
Erosion downwards, cutting deeper into the landscape.
85
Waterfalls
A place where water flows over a vertical drop in the course of a river.
86
Watershed
High ground separating one drainage basin from the adjacent drainage basin.
87
Water table
The upper surface of the groundwater.
88
Wind gap
The part of the original river valley, between the elbow and misfit, now dry and filled with deposited gravel.

Geography (5 decks)

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