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JC GEOG
River Procesess and Landforms
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Abrasion | wearing away of riverbed and sides when particles carried by river erode the sides |
attrition | stones become rounded by hitting off each other |
v-shaped Valley | valley has steep sides and a narrow floor |
interlocking spurs | flowing water goes around hard rock -erosion occurs on the outside of a bend this forms this feature |
waterfalls | vertical fall in a river |
Hydraulic Action | force of moving water that breaks up rock over time |
flood plain | fine material deposits build up to form a level plain |
meanders | as the river slows down this causes it to swing from side to side and forms this feature |
ox-bow lakes | meanders form a loop so only a narrow neck of land separates their outer banks in heavy flood the river cuts through this neck leaving the loop as a cut off river deposits seal up the cut off forming this feature |
deltas | when a river deposits its load as it enters the sea often triangular in shape |
levees | high banks along the river's channel formed from river deposits -old stage |
floods | rivers overflow their banks |
stages in a river | young, mature , old |
source | place where a river begins |
tributary | a river that joins a larger one |
confluence | place where rivers join |
mouth of a river | place where a river enters a lake or sea |
estuary | part of a river's course that iastidal |
basin | entire area drained by a river and its tributaries |
watershed | high ground that separates one river from another |
suspension | particles are lifted and carried by the river water |
saltation | particles are bounced along the river bed |
traction | large stones are dragged along the river bed |
solution | some minerals such as calcium carbonate are dissolved in the water |