Table of Contents
What do you mean by mass wasting?
Mass wasting is the movement of rock and soil down slope under the influence of gravity. Rock falls, slumps, and debris flows are all examples of mass wasting. Often lubricated by rainfall or agitated by seismic activity, these events may occur very rapidly and move as a flow.
What is mass wasting quizlet?
mass wasting. any gravity-driven downslope movement of rock or soil.
What is weathering and mass wasting?
Weathering is the physical disintegration or chemical alteration of rocks at or near the Earth‟s surface. Mass wasting is the transfer or movement of rock or soil down slope primarily by gravity.
What are the factors of mass wasting?
7 factors influencing mass wasting
- The nature and weight of materials.
- Amount of water.
- The angle of the slope.
- The climate of the area.
- Vegetation covers the area.
- Human activities.
- Tectonic movement.
What is rapid mass wasting?
In rapid mass movements, perceptible motion occurs. The events are briefer in duration, more damaging, and occur on relatively steep slopes. Rockfalls. Produced by rocks falling from near vertical cliffs, the rockfall is the smallest, most common, and most rapid from of mass wasting.
What are the types of mass wasting?
The most common mass-wasting types are falls, rotational and translational slides, flows, and creep. Falls are abrupt rock movements that detach from steep slopes or cliffs. Rocks separate along existing natural breaks such as fractures or bedding planes. Movement occurs as free-falling, bouncing, and rolling.
Which type of mass wasting involves large boulders breaking free from a cliff and falling freely?
Rock creep —Very slow mass movement of large rock fragments (pebbles, cobbles, and boulders) in response to the weight of overlying rocks. Rock fall —Very rapid mass wasting of large rock fragments that have fallen from an exposed cliff.
What are effects of mass wasting?
Mass movements affect the following elements of the environment: (1) the topography of the earth’s surface, particularly the morphologies of mountain and valley systems, both on the continents and on the ocean floors; (2) the character/quality of rivers and streams and groundwater flow; (3) the forests that cover much …
How is a slump formed?
A slump is a form of mass wasting that occurs when a coherent mass of loosely consolidated materials or a rock layer moves a short distance down a slope. Causes of slumping include earthquake shocks, thorough wetting, freezing and thawing, undercutting, and loading of a slope.
What are three characteristics of mass wasting?
Most sources recognize at least three types of mass wasting: flow, slide, and fall. Some sources include slump among the categories of relatively rapid mass-wasting process, as opposed to the slower, less dramatic (but ultimately more important) process known as creep.
What are two main sources of mass wasting?
Volcanic activity. Volcanic eruptions many times causes huge mudflows.
What are some examples of mass wasting?
An example of mass wasting is a debris flow ( the movement of water/land mass of loose mud, sand, rock, or even soil going down a slope)
What is the most widespread form of mass wasting?
A landslide, is the most common form of mass wasting that includes a wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls, which occurs when any rock or boulder falls without any obstruction down a cliff.