ESS final

cindercone (description, type of magma)

- a small cone-shaped hill of pyroclastic fragments surrounding an opening in the earth - symmetrical, steep slopes

shield volcano (description, type of magma)

- a wide, gently sloping mountain made of layers of lava and formed by quiet eruptions - mafic magma (dense, less silica) - side fissures common

what are hot spots?

- areas of volcanic activities that result from plumes of hot solid material that have risen from deep inside earths mantle (not on plate boundaries) - form where mobile plate pauses over stationary magma plume

What are the 3 causes of erosion of coastal wetlands?

- lack of sediment delivery (dams and levees) - change in wetland hydrology - subsidence

when do barrier islands occur?

- low tidal regime (tidal amplitude, low energy wave) - vegetation & nutrient cycling

composite volcano / stratovolcano (description, type of magma)

- tall, cone-shaped mountains in which layers of lava alternate with layers of ash - felsic magma (viscous) - catastrophic eruptions - symmetrical, steep slopes

What are the 3 types of erosion of coastal dunes?

1. overwash fans 2. blowout dune: due to loss of vegetation and strong winds 3. transgressive dune

Stoss/windward angle of a dune: ~ __ degrees Leeward slope (slipface) angle: ~___ degrees

15, 330

Flood of ____, Lower Mississippi River: Extreme events = Policy stimulus: Navigation → Flood control

1927

Control Structure: - Mississippi flow and sediment into Atchafalaya at ~__% - significance... prevents ________ of "active" major river system

30 avulsion

?? importance of mafic and felsic magma to various crustal building processes

?

coastal zone and energy

?

basalt

A dark, dense, igneous rock with a fine texture, found in oceanic crust

aphanitic texture

A texture in igneous rocks in which individual mineral grains are too small to be seen without magnification; results from rapid cooling of magma and generally indicates an extrusive origin.

what plate is this?

African Plate

what were the major developments that led to the theory of plate tectonics?

Alfred Wegener came up with the idea of continents moving ("floating") but had no explanation for why they moved -- his ideas led the way for plate tectonics to be studied and proven.

what plate is this?

Antarctic Plate

master stream of the Mississippi Delta is ___________ River; 30% of the Mississippi is discharging in to it.

Atchafalaya

dams

Built across a body of water, slows the movement of water behind it, creates large reservoir for water supply, decreases erosion

calcite

CaCO3 (calcium carbonate)

How is a calcic horizon formed? How is it related to annual rainfall?

Calcification: deposition of calcium carbonate in upper horizons due to capillary water movement. calcic horizon increases in depth as precipitation increases. Caliche: pedogenic horizon of calcium carbonate!

biosphere

Consists of all life on Earth and all parts of the Earth in which life exists, including land, water, and the atmosphere.

what plate is this?

Eurasian Plate

What the five factors of soil formation?

GCOLTH: Geology: parent material and minerals Climate: precipitation/evapotranspiration Organisms: plants, earthworms, dung beetle...humus! Landforms: aspect, dynamics, catena! Time: processes change through time

what plate is this?

Indo-Australia Plate

The ___________ _____ has the largest rates of coastal erosion in the world.

Mississippi Delta

what plate is this?

North American Plate

Identify and describe the common soil horizons for a soil profile

O: plant litter layer A: dark, organic layer E: elluvial layer, light in color, sandy B: illuvial layer, dark in color, increase in clay C: loose, weathered debris (regolith) R: unweathered parent material, bedrock

what plate is this?

Pacific Plate

clastic sediment

Sediment formed from fragmented rock and mineral debris produced by weathering and erosion.

clastic sedimentary rocks

Sedimentary rock that forms when fragments of preexisting rocks are compacted or cemented together.

what plate is this?

South American Plate

cinder cones

Steep, conical hill formed over a vent from lava fragments accumulating over single vent. Generally form around composite and shield volcanoes.

What is fetch?

The distance the wind blows across the water

continental drift

The hypothesis that the continents slowly move across Earth's surface.

Alfred Wegener

a German scientist who proposed the theory of continental drift in the 1900s

what type of features are associated with hotpots?

a chain of volcanoes (both continental and oceanic, which results in island chains)

rock conglomerate

a clastic sedimentary rock that is composed of a substantial fraction of rounded to subangular gravel-size clasts

active margin

a continental margin that coincides with a plate boundary and as a result is tectonically active

biomes

a large naturally occurring community of flora and fauna occupying a major habitat, e.g., forest or tundra.

calderas

a large volcanic crater, typically one formed by a major eruption leading to the collapse of the mouth of the volcano.

coquina

a soft porous limestone composed of shell and coral

atmosphere

a thin layer of gases surrounding Earth

What are the components to soil and how do they vary?

air & water (pore space), mineral content, and organic content (humus, roots, organisms). Variability in soil composition is subject to specific processes; change over time

crater

an approximately circular depression in the ground caused by volcanic activity

rock cycle

an idealized cycle of processes undergone by rocks in the earth's crust, involving igneous intrusion, uplift, erosion, transportation, deposition as sedimentary rock, metamorphism, remelting, and further igneous intrusion.

3 types of sand movement patterns?

barchan, transverse, parabolic

What are the two processes that make up littoral drift?

beach drift, wave generated currents

The Mississippi Delta is a _________ delta.

birdsfoot

Spits: - an extended stretch of sand or shingle jutting out into the sea from the land. - occur when there is a _____ in the _____ of the landscape or there is a river mouth or estuary. - formed when sediment is carried by _________ drift.

change, shape, longshore

breccia

coarse sedimentary rock consisting of angular fragments; or rock broken into angular fragments by faulting

columnar basalt

composed of individual layers of basalt that are divided into vertical columns; occurs from flood basalt, which is associated with deep sources of magma (large eruptions)

dark colored minerals

contain less amounts of silica, and greater amounts of other elements like magnesium and iron (formed from mafic magma)

Transgressive dunes

develop in high wind and wave energy environments with ample sand supply, arid to semi arid conditions, or very exposed coasts, and limited pioneer plant growth or early stages of primary dune break down.

Branching channels of deltas are called ______________.

distributaries

name all major plate boundary names and their direction of movement

divergent - away from each other convergent - towards each other transform - parallel to each other

cross section of a divergent plate boundary

divergent plate boundaries can also occur on continents, which results in a continental rift valley

passive margin

edge of a continent along which there is no tectonic activity

Natural levee development: - Created by numerous _____ ________ (100s of yrs) - Sediment size: Sand to silt to clay - Provide important topography between _____ ______ and ______ - Backbone of civilizations! --> People often settle on them

flood deposits flood basins, swamps

In 2005 during Hurricane Catrina, New Orleans was flooded due to failed (too shallow) _____ _____. The water broke through them from canals.

flood walls

cross-bedding

formed as inclined layers of sediment are deposited across a horizontal surface from wind or rain

How does soil infiltration vary for different landscapes and human impacts?

human activity (through crop and land management practices) can cause surface crusting, compaction, and soil organic matter, which all impact the soil infiltration. also, soil characteristics affect infiltration (ex. sandy soils have higher infiltration, clay soils have low infiltration)

Barrier islands: - linear sand deposit separated from mainland by a ______. - protect ________ from coastal erosion

lagoon, mainland

Alps

largest mountain system in Europe

light colored minerals

less dense, more silica

Coastal Dunes: - wind transfers sand from ________ zone to dunes

littoral

deltas favor environments with ___ wave energy, and where the rate of deposition is ______ than the rate of erosion

low, higher

mafic (sima) magma

magma that is silica poor, low viscosity, volatile, high density, high temperature

felsic (sial) magma

magma that is silica rich, high viscosity, less volatile, low density, low temperature

What is the importance of clay to soil fertility and structure?

many organic compounds bind to clay particles, which are predominantly negatively charged. clay also buffers against extreme pH changes

How is the relationship of evapotranspiration and precipitation important to different soil processes?

moisture of soil affects its structure and how healthy it is

What is littoral drift?

movement of sand along the shoreline

Subsidence: - lowering of surface - Oxidation of organic topsoiland ____ - __________ of soft sediments

peat compaction

when waves are strong enough, fluvial sands of distributaries can be "________" into coastal sand ridge

reworked

Delta: plain of _________ sediments deposited as a river enters a ________ body of water - young - large, but sensitive, - occur in diverse environments - human context - under threat

riverine, standing

intrusive igneous rock features

rock formed from the cooling and solidification of magma beneath Earth's surface

extrusive igneous rock

rock that forms as a result of volcanic activity at or near the Earth's surface

Dunes: - form by _________ of sand - ripples migrate over the dune

saltation

What are overwash fans?

sand deposit formed during storm event (goes through breach in the dune)

Dune restoration: Sea oats and sand fence approach. What aeolian process does this affect?

sea oats decrease saltation --> creates a barrier that mitigates effects of storm events

Sea level rise cause barrier islands to...

shift/migrate landward, without being drowned out

What are the 4 types of Landforms of Littoral Drift?

spits, baymouth bar, tombolo, barrier islands

What is soil infiltration?

the downward entry of water into the soil

anthropocene

the modern geological era during which humans have dramatically affected the environment

lithosphere

the rigid outer part of the earth, consisting of the crust and upper mantle.

catastrophism

the theory that changes in the earth's crust during geological history have resulted chiefly from sudden violent and unusual events.

__________ is very important in the stabilization and management of dunes.

vegetation

What some examples of ecosystem services associated with soils?

water purification, agriculture and food production, biogeochemical cycling, carbon sequestration (1,500 gigatons), flood reduction ( infiltration → groundwater)

Nutria: exotic species from South America. - consume large amounts of _______ __________ (25% of body weight daily) - burrow into levees and ______

wetland vegetation canals

What is avulsion?

when a river changes direction

atmosphere interaction with volcanism

wind direction affects which way ash clouds travel and thus influence evacuation plans