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GEOGRAPHY GCSE > Topic 4 - UK's Physical Landscape > Flashcards

Topic 4 - UK's Physical Landscape Flashcards

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1
Q

How have tectonic processes shaped the UK’s landscape?

A

The plates in which the UK are on shifted away from the Tropics and caused a convergent plate boundary in which volcanoes formed which are now mountains. C. Currents uplift rock and sometimes tilts strata if along faults. Uplift was different in different areas.

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2
Q

How has geology shaped the UK’s landscape?

A

The UK was once covered by tropical seas. Layers of dead fish and sediment (strata) built up and compressed into rock like limestone. Sea level decline and tectonic processes mean these rose and formed mountains such as the Pennines.

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3
Q

How has glaciation shaped the UK’s landscape?

A

The Ice Age brought glaciers to the UK. So parts of the land were eroded to create landforms such as corries and U shaped valleys due to abrasion on the land.

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4
Q

Igneous rock

A

Lava cools, hardens to form rock and crystals. These rocks are hard and resistant. Examples include granite.

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5
Q

Metamorphic rock

A

Change in heat and pressure, compressing rock making it harder. They are very resistant. Examples include schist and slates.

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6
Q

Sedimentary rock

A

Strata compacted together to form solid rock. Resistance varies from low to medium resistance. Examples include clay, chalk, limestone.

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7
Q

What is the Tees-Ex line?

A

The line that separates the main rock types in the UK

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8
Q

Main upland rock types

A

More metamorhpic and igneous so very resistant and hard. Examples include granite, slate, schist in places like Lake District, Peak District.

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9
Q

Main lowland rock types

A

Mostly sedimentary rock so less resistant and softer. Examples include clay, chalk, limestone in places like the South Downs (flatter relief).

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10
Q

Physical processes that affect UK upland landscape (geology, tectonics)

A

Igneous basalt rick and granite due to past surface and below surface eruptions. Sedimentary rock from when UK under tropical seas such as sandstone.

Large mountains erupting from boundary collisions led to the mountains we have today.

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11
Q

How have humans created a distinctive upland landscape? (settlement, building materials, field boundaries, farming, economic activity)

A

Farm buildings far from each other and no villages, local materials like slate and stone due to easier transportation, not perfectly straight to work with shape of land, sheep/cow etc farming to withstand harsh conditions and no crops due to harsh conditions, wool meat milk sold

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12
Q

How have humans created a distinctive lowland landscape? (settlement, building materials, field boundaries, farming, economic activity)

A

Villages due to low lying land with roads and shops, sand clay and chalk - more variety due to easier transport, straight and uniforms as it is easier due to low lying land, crops rather than cattle due to warmer more predictable conditions, many services such as shops

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13
Q

Physical processes that affect UK upland landscape (ice age, landscape shape)

A

Last ice age left a glaciated landscape due to erosion such as abrasion.

Corries (deep, hollow, bowl like shape), U shaped valley (flat base, steep sides, wide), jagged rocks and surfaces due to freeze thaw weathering.

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14
Q

Physical processes that affect UK upland landscape (weathering, slope processes)

A

Freeze thaw weathering - water enters cracks, freezes and expands, thaws at day and repeats, pressure increases to crack rocks off leaving a sharp jagged surface.

Landslides/rockfalls due to rocks being made heavier due to rain (saturation) and them falling due to gravity.

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15
Q

Physical processes that affect UK upland landscape (post glacial river processes, climatogical)

A

Misfit river in areas where it didn’t erode bring soils and nutrients to soil for good farming.

Colder as higher you up it is colder. Lots of relief rainfall as warm air is pushed up and mixed to form clouds and so it rains.

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16
Q

Physical processes that affect UK lowland landscape (geology, tectonics)

A

The Weald is made up of chalk escarpments (sedimentary rock)

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17
Q

Physical processes that affect UK lowland landscape (ice age, landscape shape)

A

Glacial melt water eroded large amounts of sedimentary rock, exposing sandstones and a lowland landscape.

Flat vale, dry valleys, no rivers due to impermeable chalk in winter amd instead meltwater would run over it and erode the valleys. Now its warmer, ground has melted so water runs through chalk underground.

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18
Q

Physical processes that affect UK lowland landscape (weathering, slope processes)

A

Biological breaking down structure of rock, chemcial dissolves chemcials in rock. Glacial melt water erodes landscape.

Soil creep - sandstone clay etc absorb lots of water become saturated and move slowly move down slope.

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19
Q

Physical processes that affect UK lowland landscape (post glacial river processes, climatogical)

A

Rivers flood and carry sediment to make more flood plains also making more fertile land in valleys.

More rainfall - more flooding and so more saturation so more slope movement.

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20
Q

Resistant rock

A

Hard rock like igneous rock (granite etc) and resistbat sedimentary rock (limestone etc) more difficult to be eroded.

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21
Q

Less resistant rock

A

Less resistant sedimentary rock like clay and shales that are more easily eroded.

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22
Q

What are joints and faults?

A

Joints - small, vertical cracks
Faults - larger cracks due to tectonic movement

More of these mean weaker rock.

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23
Q

Discordant coastline - rock alignment, features/landforms, erosion or depositon?

A

Alternating types of rock perpendicular to coast
Headlands, bays, arches, stacks, stumps
Both erosion and depositional landforms

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24
Q

Concordant coastline - rock alignment, features/landforms, erosion or depositon?

A

Same type of rock parallel to coast
Coves but can be featureless
Usually just erosional landforms

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25
How do headlands and bays form?
Sections of coast with alternating types of rock (discordant). Soft rock erodes quicker to form bays leaving behind the harder rock as headlands. Material eroded from soft rock is left as sand and deposited into the bay.
26
How do arches, stacks and stumps form?
Faults and joints appear in rock. Erosional processes eroded the rock to form a cave. Further erosion causes an arch to form. Erosion at base widens arch an weathering weakens the top. Then it collapses to leave a stack. Erosion and weathering then turn it into a stump.
27
How do wave cut notches and platforms form?
Erosion at base of cliff wears away rock to form a wave cut notch. Above, the overhang is weakened and collpases due to it being unstable. The backswash carries away the eroded material to form a wave cut platform. Repeats and cliff retreats, erosion rate decreases.
28
How does seasonality impact coastal erosion?
Colder temperatures mean more salt and freeze thaw weathering. Hotter means more tropical storms so more erosion due to higher wind causing more destructive waves.
29
How does storm frequency impact coastal erosion?
Winter - more frequent storms so more destructive waves causing more erosion.
30
How does prevailing wind and fetch impact coastal erosion?
Exposed to warm south westerlies from Atlantic ocean - longer fetch and more erosion.
31
Destructive waves
High energy, high frequency, short wavelength, high and steep, backwash stronger than swash, causes erosion
32
Constructive waves
Weak energy, low frequency, long wavelength, shallow, swash stronger than backwash, causes deposition
33
Describe process of rotational slumping
Rain falls at the boundary between sand and clay building up, lubricating it - sand is permeable and clay is impermeable. Sand saturates and material dramatically slumps rotationally.
34
Describe process of rock slides
Joints/bedding planes lined diagonally to sea. Erosion at base weakens cliff also due to weathering. Rain can also add to this. Becomes unsupported and material moves in a diagonal straight line.
35
Weathering types
Mechanical - freeze thaw weathering Chemical - weak acidity in rain Biological - tree roots and animals burrowing
36
Erosion types
Abrasion - waves carry rock fragments chucking them on the land, scouring it rubbing on the surface. H. Action - waves compress air into cracks. Pressure incrases and cracks rock. It expands and rock is broken off. Attrition - rock fragments collide to become smoother and smaller. Solution - rain dissolves chemicals in rock.
37
What is deposition?
Material deposited by constructive waves due to a decrease in wave energy to form beaches, spits and bars.
38
Describe the process of longshore drift
Happens due to prevailing wind - hit beach at angle. Swash hits beach at angle and deposits material at angle. Then falls at 90° angle due to gravity during the backwash. Repeats and sediment is transported in a zig zag pattern.
39
How does a spit form?
Longshore drift moves material along the coast. It meets the end of the coastline and the sediment builds up. Wind creates a re curve end and waves that don't reach the area behind the spit create a marshland.
40
How does a bar form from a spit?
Longshore drift occurs. A spit develops and joins to another headland in front of a bay to form a bar. The water trapped behind is a lagoon.
41
Types of transportation
Solution - dissolved chemicals of rock Suspension - small particles suspended in water Saltation - slightly heavier pebbles hop and bounce Traction - large pebbles rolled
42
How human activities impact coastal landscapes
Industry - increases weight in cliff so more slumping. Pollution affects wildlife. Sand dredged to build up beach means waves are taller, making them more destructive. Agriculture - farmer ploughs expose rock to rain so more slumping and weathering. Development - building harbours extracts sediment so cliffs less stable and collapse. Boats increase water pollution. Coastal management - protecting areas with (groynes etc) protects that area but speeds up erosion down coast, land is being lost quicker
43
Climate change and sea level rise
Global warming - thermal expansion and glacial input means sea level rises.
44
Climate change and increase in storm frequency
Warmer air means more evaporation so more frequent storms. More storms means more destructive waves so more erosion of cliffs.
45
Storms/flooding impact on people and environment.
People - homes fleeing, business, infrastructure and tourism, economy, lifestyle Environment - more erosion so more flooding, coastal habitats destroyed
46
Cost benefit analysis
Costs more than benefits - scheme not built | Benefits more than costs - scheme built
47
D/A of groynes (H)
(Stop longshore drift to encourage deposition) A - cheapest hard engineering, creates bigger beach D - ugly, prevent beach walks, makes erosion worse further down.
48
D/A of sea walls (H)
(Reflect wave enegy back out to sea to reduce erosion) A - provide promenade for business D - expensive, ugly, hard to get down to beach
49
D/A of beach nourishment (S)
(Adding sediment to beach to absorb wave enegy and reduce erosion at base) A - natural, attracts tourists, relatively cheap, no impact on erosion down coast. D - storms transport material away, needs to be replaced often
50
D/A of slope stabilisation (S)
(Drainage pipes reduce saturation so less slumping) A - doesn't affect erosion down coast, keeps cliff in place and safe D - difficult to install so beach may close for long time
51
How do width and depth change in rivers?
Both increase as erosion increase as you go further down - vertical and lateral
52
How does discharge change in rivers?
Increase due to wider and deeper also due to joining tributaries
53
How does velocity change in a river?
Increase as erosion smooths bed so less friction, more water so forced to move faster, gravity forces it down.
54
How does sediment load size, shape change in rivers?
Increases as more erosion means more sediment in river, attrition means sediment become smoother and rounder.
55
How does gradient change in a river?
Decrease as river flows from mouth to source due to gravity.
56
River upper course characteristics
Hard resistant rock, steep gradient, vertical erosion - steep valley sides, slow - friction on rough bed, low, shallow, low discharge, large angular stones.
57
River middle course characteristics
Less resistant rock, less steep, lateral erosion, velocity increasing, discharge increasing, wider, deeper, smaller and rounder stones
58
River lower course charcteristics
Less resistant rock, low gradient, high velocity, lateral erosion, large discharge, very wide, deep, small well rounded material
59
How do waterfalls form?
More resistant rock over less resistant rock. Less r. rock erodes faster. The bedload erodes the bed at the foot and makes a plunge pool. Less resistant rock collapsing means erosion of the more r. rock. Overhang collapses. This continues and waterfall retreats upstream forming a gorge.
60
How do V-shaped valleys form?
Vertical erosion occurs in upper course. Weathering weakens and breaks down the sides. Gravity brings the material down into the river to leave a V shaped valley
61
How do interlocking spurs form?
The river moves around areas of hard rock due to it not being able to erode them. This means interlocking spurs are formed.
62
How do meanders form?
More lateral erosion. River erodes on outer bend where current in fastest (thalweg) to create a river cliff. Inside - depostion to create slip off slope. Overtime river course changes and moves down valley. When the river meander reaches the sides of the valley, it erodes them, widening the valley floor and floodplain. It may loop back on itself until a narrow neck of land is left.
63
How do oxbow lakes form?
Before Oxbow lakes are formed, they begin as part of meanders. As erosion and deposition continue, the meander will start to fold back onto itself leaving only a narrow neck of land. That part of the river is cut off from the rest and an oxbow lake is formed. It dries up and a meander scar is left.
64
How do floodplains form?
Meanders erode into hills to create a flat area called a floodplain. When these flood, they become very fertile.
65
How do levees form?
When the river floods, material is deposited by the channel edges and form natural embankments. Levee builds up every time the river floods.
66
How do deltas form?
River reaches sea or ocean, gets slower and deposits sediment which builds up in layers in a fan shaped delta. River splits into distributaries and creates area of wetland.
67
Impact of precipitaion on hydrographs
More rainfall means more discharge - thunderstorms, snow melt
68
Impact of geology on hydrographs
Impermeable rocks can't absorb water so more runoff.
69
Impact of drainage basin, shape and size on hydrographs
Small, circular - quicker for water to reach channel. | Long narrow - harder for water on ends to reach channel.
70
Impact of soil type on hydrographs
Impermeable soils dont let water inflitrate through so more runoff.
71
Impact of slopes and soil depth on hydrographs
Steeper - higher runoff | Shallow soils - saturate quicker so more runoff
72
Impact of vegetation on hydrographs
Less vegetation means less interception of water and less take in water so more runoff
73
Impacts of urbanisation on hydrographs
More impermeable surfaces like concrete increase runoff
74
Impact of antecedent conditions on hydrographs
Wet weather means soil already saturated so more runoff
75
Impacts of flooding
Houses submerged, evacuation of people, schools closed, business disrupted, environmental habitats destroyed, saturated soil can lead to flooding further on
76
Why is flood risk increasing in UK?
Increasing population so houses built on floodplains at risk to flooding. Urbanisation - more impermeable surfaces, more runoff. Climate change - warmer weather more trop. storms. Jet stream brings more intense storms to UK.

GEOGRAPHY GCSE (1 decks)

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