What is frost shattering, and what does it produce on a mountainside?

Frost shattering is repeated freeze-thaw breaking rock apart, and it produces angular scree at the foot of the slope and blockfields on flatter ground.

Describe abrasion as a glacial process.

Rock fragments held in the base of the ice are dragged across the bedrock and scour it, in the way that sandpaper wears a surface.

Which glacial process requires meltwater at the bed, and why does that matter?

Plucking, because the ice must freeze onto the rock, so it operates under warm-based glaciers and not where the bed is permanently frozen.

WJEC A-Level Geography 601-8455-3

Coastal Landscapes

Glaciated Landscapes

Topic overview The glacier as an open system Climate change and the glacier budget Glacier movement Types of ice mass and their distribution Glacial weathering and erosion processes Macro-scale erosional landforms Glacial transport and depositional landforms Fluvioglacial landforms Suites of landforms in glacial landscapes Periglacial processes and ground ice Periglacial action of water and wind Glacial change over different timescales Glacial environments and human activity

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Economic Growth and Challenge: ChinaContemporary theme

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Development in an African ContextContemporary theme

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Energy Challenges and DilemmasContemporary theme

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Key Concepts in Geography

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Glaciated Landscapes

Glacial weathering and erosion processes

3 things to know
AS Unit 1

Overview

Freeze-thaw weathering in a glacial environment, frost shattering and abrasion as a glacial process.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Your recallNot started

Key term

Describe freeze-thaw weathering in a glacial environment.

Key term

Why is freeze-thaw weathering so effective in glacial environments?

Process

Describe plucking as a glacial process.

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1
Describe freeze-thaw weathering in a glacial environment.
Model answer
Meltwater enters a crack in the rock and freezes as temperatures fall, expanding by about 9% and widening the crack, and repeated cycles shatter the rock into angular fragments.
2
Why is freeze-thaw weathering so effective in glacial environments?
Model answer
Temperatures cross 0°C frequently, particularly in spring and autumn and on a daily cycle, and meltwater is abundant to fill the cracks.
3
What is frost shattering, and what does it produce on a mountainside?
Model answer
Frost shattering is repeated freeze-thaw breaking rock apart, and it produces angular scree at the foot of the slope and blockfields on flatter ground.
4
Describe abrasion as a glacial process.
Model answer
Rock fragments held in the base of the ice are dragged across the bedrock and scour it, in the way that sandpaper wears a surface.
5
Describe plucking as a glacial process.
Model answer
Meltwater at the base freezes onto jointed bedrock, and as the glacier moves it pulls blocks of that rock away with it.
6
Which glacial process requires meltwater at the bed, and why does that matter?
Model answer
Plucking, because the ice must freeze onto the rock, so it operates under warm-based glaciers and not where the bed is permanently frozen.

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