Key term
AQA A-Level Geography 7037
Water and Carbon Cycles
Topic overviewSystems, Stores and FlowsMass Balance in Water and Carbon StoresFieldwork and the Rainforest Case StudyMeasures of Central Tendency and DispersionSpearman's Rank, Chi-Square and Data AnalysisScatter Graphs, Triangular Graphs and Logarithmic ScalesAtlas, Thematic and Flow-Line MapsOS Maps, Sketch Maps and Field SketchesRemote Sensing, GIS and Big DataQualitative Data, Questionnaires and InterviewsSampling, Accuracy and Measurement ErrorData Misuse and Research EthicsThe Global Water StoresEvaporation, Condensation and Cloud FormationPrecipitation and Cryospheric ProcessesThe Drainage Basin as an Open SystemInfiltration and Overland FlowThe Water Balance EquationFlood HydrographsHuman Impacts on the Water CycleThe Global Carbon StoresPhotosynthesis, Respiration and Carbon TransferFarming, Land Use and Carbon SinksGreenhouse Gases and Links between the CyclesFeedback Loops and Climate ChangeCarbon Sequestration and MitigationMass Balance in a Drainage BasinUnit Conversion and Flux CalculationsLine Graphs, Bar Graphs and Pie ChartsWater and Carbon Cycles in the Tropical RainforestThe Amazon rainforest case studyStores within a River CatchmentTransfers and the Controls on Catchment HydrologyThe River Eden catchment case study
Hot Desert Systems and LandscapesLandscape
Topic overviewDeserts as Systems: Inputs, Stores, Flows and FeedbackDesert Climate, Soils and VegetationThe Aridity IndexEnergy, Sediment and Geomorphic Processes in DesertsThermal Fracture and Rock BreakdownDeflation, Abrasion and Aeolian TransportDesert Water Sources and Ephemeral StreamsDeflation Hollows, Yardangs and ZeugenBarchan and Seif DunesWadis, Bahadas and PedimentsPlayas, Inselbergs and Landscape DevelopmentObservation, Measurement and Mapping in DesertsDeath Valley hot desert case studyThe Causes and Definition of DesertificationEnvironmental Impacts of DesertificationHuman Impacts and Responses to DesertificationDesertification on the Yatenga plateau, Burkina Faso
Coastal Systems and LandscapesLandscape
Topic overviewEnergy Inputs to the Coastal SystemCoastal Flows and FeedbackWaves, Tides and Sediment CellsMarine Erosion and Transport ProcessesCliffs, Notches and Wave-Cut PlatformsBeaches, Spits and BarsSand Dune Formation and SuccessionEstuaries, Mudflats and SaltmarshSea Level Change and Coastlines of SubmergenceEmergent Coastlines and Present Sea Level RiseHard Engineering at the CoastSoft Engineering and Managed RetreatThe Holderness coast case studyThe Sundarbans and the Ganges–Brahmaputra delta
Glacial Systems and LandscapesLandscape
Topic overviewGlaciers as Systems: Inputs, Stores and FlowsIce-Albedo and Negative FeedbackDynamic Equilibrium, Landforms and LandscapesThe Glacial Mass Budget and Ice MovementThe Distribution of Cold EnvironmentsClimate, Soils and Vegetation in Cold EnvironmentsCorrie FormationGlacial Troughs and Hanging ValleysRoches Moutonnées, Drumlins and ErraticsMoraines, Till and Fluvioglacial LandformsPeriglacial Landforms and ProcessesThermokarst and Landform DistributionThe Fragility of Cold EnvironmentsImpacts and Management of Cold EnvironmentsFieldwork Skills in Glaciated EnvironmentsGlacial Case Study RequirementsCwm Idwal and the Ogwen valley case studyAlaska as a contrasting glaciated landscape
HazardsHazards or ecosystems
Topic overviewNatural Hazards: Types, Perception and ResponsesThe Park ModelThe Hazard Management CycleThe Internal Structure of the EarthPlate Tectonic Theory and Plate MovementPlate Margins and SeismicityWhere Vulcanicity OccursVolcanic Hazards and Eruption MagnitudeVolcanic Prediction, Impacts and ResponsesA Recent Volcanic EventHow Earthquakes HappenSeismic Hazards, Distribution and MagnitudeEarthquake Prediction, Impacts and ResponsesFocus, Epicentre and Seismic VulnerabilityThe 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunamiTropical Storm Formation and IntensificationTropical Storm Hazards, Distribution and MagnitudeThe Impacts of Tropical StormsManaging Storm Risk in Contrasting PlacesTyphoon Haiyan and Hurricane Maria comparedWildfires and Vegetation TypeWeather Conditions and Wildfire RiskCauses of IgnitionPrimary, Secondary and Environmental Impacts of WildfiresSocial, Economic and Political Impacts of WildfiresShort- and Long-Term Responses to WildfiresWildfire Preparedness, Prevention and AdaptationThe 2018 Camp FireThe Philippines as a multi-hazard environmentLiving with Vesuvius in the Naples area
Ecosystems Under StressHazards or ecosystems
Topic overviewBiodiversity Levels and Causes of DeclineBiodiversity Loss and Ecosystem ServicesEcosystem Structure, Trophic Levels and Food WebsEcosystem Inputs, Outputs, Stores and TransfersBiomass, Net Primary Production and SuccessionNutrient Cycling, Climate and SoilEnvironmental Controls and Ecosystem FeedbackBiomes and the Tropical Rainforest EnvironmentRainforest Stratification and AdaptationsSavanna Climate, Soils and AdaptationsHuman Impacts on the Tropical RainforestHuman Impacts on the SavannaSuccession and Climatic ClimaxTemperate Deciduous WoodlandPlagioclimax and Heather MoorlandCoral Reef Conditions, Services and StressesHuman Pressures and Coral Reef ManagementThe Great Barrier Reef: Extent and BleachingCrown-of-Thorns Starfish and Reef TourismLocal Ecosystems: Heathland, Parkland, Ponds and DunesAdaptations to Dry EnvironmentsAgriculture, Urbanisation and Invasive SpeciesEcological Change and Conservation StrategiesSustainability and Stakeholder ConflictStudying Local Ecosystems and Ecological ChangeThe Sefton Coast sand dunes case studyEcological change in Borneo
Global Systems and Global Governance
Topic overviewGlobal Flows of Capital, Labour, Goods and InformationGlobal Patterns of Production and DistributionTransport and Communications in GlobalisationSecurity, Tariffs and Trade BarriersForms of Global InterdependenceUnequal Flows and Global StabilityWorld Trade Patterns and Market AccessTransnational CorporationsTrade in Food and Manufactured GoodsCase Study: A Transnational CorporationWhat Global Governance MeansScales of GovernanceThe Global CommonsThe Physical Character of AntarcticaThe Southern Ocean and Climate Threats to AntarcticaThreats to Antarctic ResourcesThe Antarctic TreatyUNEP, NGOs and the Limits of Antarctic GovernanceBenefits and Costs of GlobalisationConflict, Environmental Costs and Critiquing Globalisation
Changing Places
Topic overviewWhat Place MeansEndogenous Factors: Location, Physical and Built SettingEndogenous Factors: Demographic and EconomicExogenous Factors, Relationships and ConnectionsContinuity and Change in PlacesLocal and Contrasting Place StudiesDetroit as a contrasting place studyMigration, Investment and Cultural Change in PlacesPolicy as an External Force on PlaceThe Legacy of Past ConnectionsGlobal Networks and Changing Place CharacteristicsInequality and Access between PlacesLived Experience and Shaping Place MeaningsRepresenting Place and Contested MeaningsThe Requirements of a Place StudySources for Place Studies
Contemporary Urban EnvironmentsHuman option
Topic overviewUrbanisation and Its Related ProcessesThe Drivers of UrbanisationDeindustrialisation, Decentralisation and Regeneration PolicyMegacities and World CitiesWhat Shapes Urban FormCultural Diversity and Urban SegregationNew Urban Landscapes and the Post-Modern CityEconomic Inequality within CitiesManaging Urban Inequality and DiversityEmployment Programmes and Top-Down StrategiesThe Urban Heat Island and Urban PrecipitationUrban Winds and Air QualityImpermeable Surfaces and Urban CatchmentsUrban HydrographsSustainable Urban Drainage SystemsRiver Restoration and the Benefits of SUDSWho Delivers River RestorationCheonggyecheon river restoration in SeoulSources and Composition of Urban WasteRecycling, Recovery and Waste DisposalLandfill and Incineration ComparedUrban Air and Water PollutantsDereliction and Pollution in Contrasting CitiesManaging Urban Pollution and DerelictionThe Local Environmental Impact of CitiesDimensions of Urban SustainabilityCompact Form, Mixed Use and LiveabilityContrasting Urban Case Studies
Population and the EnvironmentHuman option
Topic overviewThe Physical Environment and PopulationGlobal Food Production and Agricultural SystemsTropical Wet and Semi-Arid ClimatesZonal Soils: Chernozems and LatosolsSoil Erosion and Its ManagementWaterlogging, Salinisation and Soil StructureThe Dimensions of Food SecurityStudying Climatic Types and Zonal SoilsGlasgow: place and health case studyHealth, Morbidity and the Epidemiological TransitionPhysical Environment and DiseaseMalaria: Distribution, Impacts and ManagementCoronary Heart Disease and Non-Communicable DiseasesGlobal Health Initiatives and Disease StudiesThe Demographic Transition ModelFertility, Population Structure and the Demographic DividendMigrant Types and Causes of MigrationPush and Pull Factors in MigrationThe Components of Population ChangeOptimum Population and Resource DemandEcological Footprint and Population–Resource TheoriesOzone Depletion and Human HealthClimate Change, Heatwaves and Vector-Borne DiseaseClimate Change, Food Supply and NutritionGlobal Population ProjectionsJapan's population decline
Resource SecurityHuman option
Topic overviewStock and Flow Resources and ReservesResource Certainty and Development StagesResource Frontiers, Peaks and Sustainable DevelopmentEnvironmental Impact AssessmentGlobal Production and Consumption of Energy and MineralsThe Geopolitics of Energy, Minerals and WaterWater Sources and DemandWater Supply StrategiesThe Colorado River water supply schemeThe Costs of Supply and Managing DemandWater Conflict and Major Supply SchemesEnergy Types, Mix and Physical Controls on SupplyTNCs, National Interests and Energy ImpactsIncreasing Energy Supply: Unconventional, Nuclear and RenewableReducing Energy DemandEnvironmental Impacts and Sustainability of EnergyThe Alberta oil sands developmentChoosing a Mineral Ore Case StudyDemand for and Occurrence of Mineral OresThe Environmental Cost of Mineral ExtractionThe Bingham Canyon copper mineSustainability in Mineral SupplyAlternative Energy FuturesAlternative Water FuturesMineral Ore FuturesDrivers of Resource TransitionsResource Security and Human Welfare
Glacial Systems and Landscapes
- 18 subtopics
- 55 things to know
- Component 1
- Component 1 Section B, one landscape system of three
What Glacial Systems and Landscapes covers
Glaciers as mass budgets, the erosional and depositional landforms they leave, and the periglacial processes at their margins, followed by the fragility of cold environments under human and climatic pressure. One of three landscape options in Section B of Component 1.
Where it is assessed
Component 1
Section B, one landscape option of three.
Check the AQA specification ↗The 18 subtopics
Each one has its own page.
- Glaciers as Systems: Inputs, Stores and FlowsRecall questions on glacial systems, their inputs of precipitation, rock debris, solar radiation and geothermal heat, outputs of meltwater, calving, deposition and sublimation, their energy, stores of ice, meltwater and debris, and flows of ice, meltwater and debris.Open →
- Ice-Albedo and Negative FeedbackRecall questions on positive feedback and each step of the ice-albedo loop, and on negative feedback in which retreating ice exposes ocean water, increasing precipitation and snow accumulation and so affecting glacier mass.Open →
- Dynamic Equilibrium, Landforms and LandscapesRecall questions on dynamic equilibrium in a glacial system and what it means for the snout, on landforms, landscapes and how glaciated landscapes form, and on why glacial systems are open systems.Open →
- The Glacial Mass Budget and Ice MovementRecall questions on the glacial mass budget, accumulation and ablation zones, the equilibrium line, positive, negative and balanced budgets, past ice advance and retreat, basal sliding and internal deformation, extending, compressing and rotational flow, and warm- and cold-based glaciers.Open →
- The Distribution of Cold EnvironmentsRecall questions on the polar, alpine and periglacial settings of cold environments, their temperatures and seasonal variation, and on the extent of Pleistocene glaciation in Europe, North America and the British Isles compared with present-day cold environments.Open →
- Climate, Soils and Vegetation in Cold EnvironmentsRecall questions on short growing seasons and precipitation, on thin, waterlogged, nutrient-poor soils and cryoturbation, on the non-vascular plants, lichens, dwarf shrubs and grass-like plants of the tundra, and on how slow decomposition links acidic soils and sparse vegetation.Open →
- Corrie FormationRecall questions on nivation creating the initial hollow, the steepening of the backwall and the part rotational sliding plays.Open →
- Glacial Troughs and Hanging ValleysRecall questions on how abrasion and plucking turn a river valley into a glacial trough, changing its planform and cross-profile, on hanging valleys formed by differential erosion by tributary glaciers, and on interlocking and truncated spurs.Open →
- Roches Moutonnées, Drumlins and ErraticsRecall questions on the stoss and lee sides of a roche moutonnée and what its asymmetry and surface features reveal about ice flow, on drumlins, their material, orientation, shape and groups, and on erratics as evidence of past ice movement.Open →
- Moraines, Till and Fluvioglacial LandformsRecall questions on lateral, medial, terminal, recessional and ground moraines, till plains and till, and on meltwater channels, kames, kame terraces, eskers and outwash plains, and how fluvioglacial deposits differ from till.Open →
- Periglacial Landforms and ProcessesRecall questions on how frost heave forms patterned ground, stone circles and stripes, on ice wedges, open- and closed-system pingos and blockfields, and on the active layer, permafrost and solifluction with its lobes and terracettes.Open →
- Thermokarst and Landform DistributionRecall questions on what triggers thermokarst, its characteristic features and the feedback that speeds it up.Open →
- The Fragility of Cold EnvironmentsRecall questions on slow biological processes, thin soils, short growing seasons and low species diversity as sources of fragility.Open →
- Impacts and Management of Cold EnvironmentsRecall questions on pipelines and roads, glacier retreat, permafrost thaw, sea ice loss and coastal erosion, on management through protected areas, the Antarctic Treaty System, tourism controls, elevated pipelines and thermosyphons, and on future scenarios, indigenous involvement, mitigation, adaptation and resilience.Open →
- Fieldwork Skills in Glaciated EnvironmentsRecall questions on the observation, measurement and geospatial mapping skills used in glaciated environments, on the data manipulation and statistical skills applied to field measurements from glacial and periglacial environments, and on how data collection differs between the two.Open →
- Glacial Case Study RequirementsRecall questions on what a local-scale UK glaciated environment case study must show about glacial processes, field data and landscape outcomes, and on how a contrasting glaciated landscape beyond the UK is used to evaluate human occupation, challenges, opportunities, resilience and mitigation.Open →
- Cwm Idwal and the Ogwen valley case studyCwm Idwal and Nant Ffrancon in Eryri as the local glaciated case study: corrie and trough landforms, geology, Devensian and Loch Lomond Stadial history, till fabric and clast data, and visitor pressure.Open →
- Alaska as a contrasting glaciated landscapeAlaska as a glaciated landscape beyond the UK, where active glaciers and permafrost bring opportunities such as oil and tourism alongside challenges from the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, the Exxon Valdez spill, glacial outburst floods and thawing ground.Open →
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
Your recallNot started
Key term
What is meltwater discharge in the context of glacial system outputs?
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What are stores in a glacial system?
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Define positive feedback in the context of a glacial system.
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What surfaces are exposed when ice melts in the ice-albedo feedback process?
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What is the final outcome of the ice-albedo positive feedback loop?
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What happens to snow accumulation as a result of increased precipitation from exposed ocean water?
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What condition must be met for a glacier to be in dynamic equilibrium?
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Define the term landform.
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What is the glacial (mass) budget?
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Where are the accumulation zone and the ablation zone found on a glacier?
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When is a glacier's budget negative, and what happens to the snout?
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Name the three main global settings where cold environments are found.
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What are the defining characteristics of polar cold environments?
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What is the typical mean annual temperature characteristic of cold environment climates?
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Why are growing seasons in cold environments described as short?
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What role do lichens play in cold environment vegetation communities?
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Why does sparse vegetation reduce organic input to soils in cold environments?
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What process initiates the formation of a corrie by creating a shallow depression in the mountainside?
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Why does a rock lip (threshold) form at the front of a corrie?
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Explain the role of plucking in shaping the sides of a glacial trough.
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What happens when ice flows over a resistant bedrock obstacle to form a roche moutonnée?
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How can the asymmetry of a roche moutonnée be used to reconstruct past glacial conditions?
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What term describes a group of drumlins occurring together, and why is this significant?
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Distinguish a recessional moraine from a terminal moraine.
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Name three types of meltwater channel based on their position relative to the ice.
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Where does the meltwater that forms an esker flow?
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What repeated process drives the formation of patterned ground in periglacial environments?
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What causes the initial crack that begins ice-wedge formation?
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What structural feature gives a pingo its dome shape?
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What triggers the formation of thermokarst terrain?
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In a glaciated landscape, where do erosional landforms tend to dominate and why?
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What environmental conditions are necessary for the development of characteristic periglacial landscapes?
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Why were historical indigenous hunting and fishing practices in cold environments generally sustainable?
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What role did mining play in twentieth-century impacts on cold environments?
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In what forms did pollution occur as a result of twentieth-century resource extraction in cold environments?
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What is the primary driver of global-scale human impacts on cold environments?
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How does protected area designation help manage cold environments?
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How do visitor quotas help manage tourism sustainably in cold environments?
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What does resilience mean in the context of cold environment management?
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What data manipulation skills are applied to field measurements from glacial systems?
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How should resilience be evaluated in a contrasting glaciated landscape case study?
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Why is it important to apply fieldwork skills specifically to glacial landscapes?
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What must a local-scale UK glaciated environment case study include?
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Why must the contrasting glaciated landscape case study be from beyond the UK?
Process
Why has the village of Newtok in Alaska had to relocate?
Process
Why is Alaska a contrasting glaciated landscape to the UK?
Process
How do indigenous communities in Alaska show resilience in a cold environment?
Process
Describe meltwater discharge, iceberg calving and sublimation as outputs from a glacial system.
Process
Define accumulation, ablation and the equilibrium line.
Process
Explain the processes that deepen and steepen a corrie.
Process
Explain how frost heave and slope angle produce patterned ground.
Process
How does geology influence the landforms of Cwm Idwal?
Key term
What is the glacial history of Cwm Idwal?
Process
What human pressures affect Cwm Idwal today?
Take Glacial Systems and Landscapes further
The same content, four other ways.
Commonly confused
Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.
Abrasion vs Plucking
Abrasion: erosion caused by debris scraping bedrock. Plucking: erosion caused when ice freezes onto and removes rock.
Corrie vs Arête
Corrie: armchair-shaped hollow formed by glacial erosion. Arête: narrow ridge formed between adjacent glacial hollows.
Till vs Outwash
Till: unsorted sediment deposited directly by ice. Outwash: sorted sediment deposited by meltwater.
Questions from this topic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
In physical geography, what is a system?
Model answer
A set of interrelated components connected by flows of energy and matter, functioning as a whole.
- 2
Name one form of precipitation that acts as an input to a glacial system.
Model answer
Snow or rain.
- 3
How does rock debris enter a glacial system as an input?
Model answer
Through weathering and mass movement from valley sides.
- 4
What role does solar radiation play as an input to a glacial system?
Model answer
It provides heat energy that drives processes such as melting and ice movement.
- 5
What is the source of geothermal heat entering a glacial system?
Model answer
Heat from the bedrock beneath the glacier.
- 6
What is meltwater discharge in the context of glacial system outputs?
Model answer
Water released from the glacier as ice melts, flowing away from the system.
What is inside Levo
Six ways to work the same material.
Glacial Systems and Landscapes revision questions
- What does Glacial Systems and Landscapes cover in AQA A-Level Geography?
- 18 subtopics: glaciers as systems: inputs, stores and flows, ice-albedo and negative feedback, dynamic equilibrium, landforms and landscapes, the glacial mass budget and ice movement, the distribution of cold environments, climate, soils and vegetation in cold environments, corrie formation, glacial troughs and hanging valleys, roches moutonnées, drumlins and erratics, moraines, till and fluvioglacial landforms, periglacial landforms and processes, thermokarst and landform distribution, the fragility of cold environments, impacts and management of cold environments, fieldwork skills in glaciated environments, glacial case study requirements, cwm idwal and the ogwen valley case study and alaska as a contrasting glaciated landscape. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.
- How is Glacial Systems and Landscapes organised?
- By the AQA 7037 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.
Every question in Glacial Systems and Landscapes, on a schedule.
Attempt a question from memory, write the correct version, then attempt it again. Levo records the jump between your first attempt and your last, and brings each question back on the day you are due to forget it.
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