Erosion and Weathering

 How does the process of erosion, which involves moving water, moving ice, or wind carrying away a part of a rock, impact the environment and contribute to natural events?

• It causes a decrease in the size of rocks, which can lead to landslides and other natural disasters

• It has no significant impact on the environment or natural events

• It increases the size of rocks, making them more stable and less likely to be affected by natural events

Analyze and explain how moving water, moving ice, or wind can cause weathering and erosion. Provide examples to support your explanation.

• Moving water, ice, or wind can cause weathering and erosion by physically breaking down rocks and transporting the debris to new locations. For example, a river can erode its banks and carry the eroded material downstream, depositing it in a new location.

• Moving water, ice, or wind can cause weathering and erosion by chemically altering the composition of rocks and soil. For example, acid rain can cause chemical weathering of buildings and statues.

• Moving water, ice, or wind can cause weathering and erosion by causing temperature fluctuations that lead to the expansion and contraction of rocks, leading to their breakdown. For example, in desert environments, the extreme temperature fluctuations between day and night can cause rocks to crack and break down.

Read this paragraph from the article."Wind also causes weathering and erosion. Wind can blow sand and dirt. It can carry the dirt far away. In some places, strong wind will push sand against rocks. Over a long period of time, the wind wears down those rocks."
What can you infer from this paragraph about the strength of wind and how fast it wears down rocks?

• A wind's strength has no effect on how fast it wears down rocks.
• The stronger the wind blows, the more slowly it wears down rocks.
• The stronger the wind blows, the faster it wears down rocks.

This type of weathering occurs when rocks weaken then break down due to chemical changes in the composition of the rock.

• mechanical weathering
• chemical weathering
• erosion weathering
• deposition

Analyze the factors that contribute to mechanical weathering and explain how they lead to the physical breakdown of rocks.

• Freeze-thaw cycles, root wedging, and abrasion cause rocks to break into smaller pieces.

• Chemical reactions, acid rain, and oxidation cause rocks to break down.

• Plant roots, animal burrowing, and human activities cause rocks to wear away.

• Machinery, construction, and mining activities cause rocks to break down.

The diagrams shows a rock with water trapped in the cracks during the day and at night. 

Which statement best explains why this process results in weathering?

• frozen water acts as a solute
• water expands when it freezes
• the mass of water increases when it freezes
• frozen water dissolves most types of rock

Analyze the process that causes a metal statue to slowly turn green after years of being outside:

• mechanical weathering

• chemical weathering

Explain the process and impact of acid rain dissolving limestone as an example of chemical weathering.

• Acid rain reacts with the calcium carbonate in limestone, causing it to dissolve. This can lead to the formation of caves and sinkholes, and can also damage buildings and monuments made of limestone.

• Acid rain does not react with limestone, it only causes physical weathering.

• Acid rain dissolving limestone is not an example of chemical weathering, it is an example of biological weathering.

• Acid rain dissolving limestone does not have any significant impact on the environment or man-made structures.

How does the action of animals digging influence the process of rock separation and breakage in the soil? Explain the process.

• It is due to the release of pressure from the soil

• It is due to the freezing and thawing of the soil

• Animal actions cause the soil to move, leading to rock separation and breakage

• It is due to the abrasion of the soil

• It is due to the growth of plant roots in the soil

Explain the process and impact of plant roots growing and breaking the rock as they grow.

• They release pressure causing the rock to break

• They cause freezing and thawing which breaks the rock

• They cause animal actions which break the rock

• They cause abrasion which breaks the rock

• They grow into the rock, exerting pressure and causing it to break, which contributes to soil formation