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Glacial Systems and Landscapes

Corrie Formation

  • 3 things to know
  • Component 1

Overview

Recall questions on nivation creating the initial hollow, the steepening of the backwall and the part rotational sliding plays.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

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Key term

What process initiates the formation of a corrie by creating a shallow depression in the mountainside?

Key term

Why does a rock lip (threshold) form at the front of a corrie?

Process

Explain the processes that deepen and steepen a corrie.

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

  1. 1

    What process initiates the formation of a corrie by creating a shallow depression in the mountainside?

    Model answer

    Nivation – a combination of freeze-thaw weathering and meltwater erosion beneath a semi-permanent snow patch creates the initial hollow.

  2. 2

    After nivation creates a hollow, what accumulates there to begin true glacial erosion?

    Model answer

    Snow and ice accumulate in the hollow, compacting into glacier ice that can then erode the basin.

  3. 3

    How does the steep backwall of a corrie become progressively steeper during glaciation?

    Model answer

    Freeze-thaw weathering shatters rock above the glacier surface; loosened debris falls onto the ice, maintaining and steepening the backwall.

  4. 4

    Explain how rotational sliding contributes to the characteristic shape of a corrie floor.

    Model answer

    The glacier moves with a rotational motion, pivoting downward into the bedrock, which deepens the basin floor and creates the over-deepened, armchair-shaped profile.

  5. 5

    Which erosional process removes rock from the back and sides of a corrie by freezing meltwater in joints and pulling away blocks?

    Model answer

    Plucking (quarrying) – meltwater refreezes around jointed rock, and moving ice tears blocks away.

  6. 6

    What process over-deepens the floor of a corrie, and how does it operate?

    Model answer

    Abrasion – debris embedded in the base of the glacier grinds and scours the bedrock floor, deepening it below the level of the threshold.

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