River Landscapes
Key Words
Course – the path of a river as it flows downhill.
V-Shaped valley – an area between mountians or hills with steep sides. A river normally runs along the bottom.
Vertical erosion – high turbulence causes rough, angular particles to scrap along┬á the river bed causing a downwards erosion.
Lateral erosion – erosion that widens the river valley.
Types of erosion:
- Hydraulic action – force of the water breaks rock particles away from the channel.
- Abrasion – rocks moved along in the river scrape and rub against the channel.
- Attrition – rocks moving along in the river smash into each other causing them to smooth off and break into smaller fragments.
- Solution – water dissolves rock.
Transportation – movement of eroded material.
Traction – boulders are pushed along the river bed.
Saltration – pebbles are bounced along the river bed.
Suspension – small particles are carried along in the river.
Solution – dissolved soluble materials car carried along in the river.
Deposition – river drops eroded material.
Waterfalls – form where a river flows over an ara of hard rock followed by an area of softer rock.
Gorge – deep narrow valley with steep rocky sides.
Interlocking spurs – hillsides that interlock with a river that winds around them.
Meanders – large bends in a river.
Ox-Bow Lakes – formed from meanders which have got larger over time.
Flood Plains – flat areas of land that flood.
Levees – natural embankments along the edges of a river channel.
Estuaries – tidal areas where the river meets the sea.
Contour Lines – orange lines on maps that tell you the height of the land.
River discharge – volume of water flowing in a river.
Dams – huge walls built across rivers to hold back the water.
Reservoir – an artificial lake formed behind a dam.
Links for Learning
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Bitesize: River processes
Bitesize: River landforms
S-Cool: Rivers
GCSE Rivers Glossary
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