| A | B |
|---|
| erosion | the process by which water, ice, wind, or gravity moves fragments of rock and soil |
| sediment | small, solid particles of material from rocks or organisms which are moved by water or wind, resulting in erosion and deposition |
| deposition | the process by which sediment settles out of the water or wind that is carrying it, and is deposited in a new location |
| mass movement | any one of several processes by which gravity moves sediment downhill |
| runoff | water that flows over the ground surface rather than soaking into the ground |
| rill | a tiny groove in soil made by flowing water |
| gully | a large channel in soil formed by erosion |
| stream | a channel through which water is continually flowing downhill |
| river | a large stream |
| tributary | a stream that flows into a large stream |
| drainage basin | the land area from which a river and its tributaries collect their water |
| divide | a ridge of land that separates one drainage basin or water shed from another |
| flood plain | a broad, flat valley through which a river flows |
| meander | a looping curve formed in a river as it winds through its flood basin |
| oxbow lake | the crescent-shaped, cutoff body of water that remains after a river carves a new channel |
| alluvial fan | a wide, sloping deposit of sediment formed where a stream leaves a mountain range |
| delta | a landform made of sediment that is deposited where a river flows into an ocean or lake |
| groundwater | water that fills the cracks and pores in underground soil and rock layers |
| stalactite | a calcite deposit that hangs from the roof of a cave |
| stalagmite | a cone-shaped calcite deposit that builds up from the floor of a cave |
| karst topography | a type of landscape in rainy regions where there is limestone near the surface, characterized by caverns, sinkholes, and valleys |
| energy | the ability to do work or cause change |
| potential energy | energy that is stored and available to be used later |
| kinetic energy | the form of energy an object has because of its motion |
| abrasion | the grinding away of rock by other rock particles carried in water, ice, or wind |
| load | the amount of sediment that a river or stream carries |
| friction | the force that opposes the motion of one surface as it moves across another surface |
| turbulence | a type of movement of water in which, rather than moving downstream, the water moves every which way |
| glacier | a huge mass of ice and snow that moves slowly over the land |
| valley glacier | a long, narrow glacier that forms when snow and ice build up in a mountain valley |
| continental glacier | a glacier that covers much of a continent or large island |
| ice age | cold time period in Earth's history, during which glaciers covered large parts of the surface |
| plucking | the process by which a glacier picks up rocks as it flows over the land |
| till | the sediments deposited directly by a glacier |
| moraine | a ridge formed by the till deposited at the edge of a glacier |
| kettle | a small depression that forms when a chunk of ice is left in glacial till |
| beach | wave-washed sediment along the coast |
| longshore drift | the movement of water and sediment along a beach caused by waves coming into shore at an angle |
| spit | a beach formed by longshore drift that projects like a finger out into the water |
| sand dune | a deposit of wind-blown sand |
| deflamation | wind erosion that removes surface materials |
| loess | a wind-formed deposit made of fine particles of clay and silt |
