All About The Dirty Life
Weathering, Erosion, Deposition, & Soil
Weathering
Three types of weathering
Physical Weathering
- This means the rocks fall apart into smaller pieces.
This causes rocks to disintegrate.
Two types of physical weathering
Freeze-thawing
- Freezing is when water becomes ice. Thawing is when ice turns to water. Freeze-thawing weathering occurs when the temperature keeps fluctuating above and below 0 celsius.
Exfoliation
- This is when pieces of the outer layer of rock breaks away. This happens in places where there is a very big difference in temperature between the night and day.
Chemical Weathering
- This means the minerals that make up the rock are changed by a chemical reaction. When rocks are made of minerals that react with H2O, CO2, and O2 in the environment this is called chemical weathering. This causes rocks to decompose. Dead plants can cause chemical weathering.
Biological Weathering
- This is when plants cause rocks to break up. The roots of plants cause rocks to disintegrate. The roots can grow through cracks in rocks to find groundwater.
Physical Weathering
This causes rocks to disintegrate.
Chemical Weathering
Biological Weathering
Erosion
Agents of Erosion (5)
Gravity, Running water (rivers, streams), Glaciers, Wind, and Waves
Black Canyon and Gunnison River
Imagine traveling west across for miles of rolling hills with open shrublands. Then out of nowhere in front of you is a narrow 1,500 feet deep canyon stopping you from going any further west. That is the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. Over millions of years, the Gunnison River has cut a very steep and narrow canyon called the Black Canyon. Its steepest point is 2,722 feet deep at Warner Point. The Black Canyon is fairly close to Montrose, Colorado. If you ever get to visit, you will be amazed by the rugged and beautiful canyon and river.
Bookcliffs and Mt. Garfield
The Bookcliffs are located north of Grand Junction. They were named the Bookcliffs because at the very top part of the cliffs they look like a bunch of books all lined up in a row. The Bookcliffs go from East to West and continue way into Utah. The Bookcliffs were formed by erosion from water wind, and gravity.
Deposition
Looped moraine
Assateague Island
As one of the last remaining undeveloped coastlines along the Atlantic Coast of the US, Assateague Island provides habitat for many unique plants and animals. Its natural state makes it a perfect model for how a natural barrier island may be impacted by climate change.
Soil composition
How is soil used?
- Soil lets plants grow, allows gas exchanges to happen between the land and air, provides habitat for most of the organisms on Earth, holds and cleans water, recycles nutrients, and is used for constructing structures like buildings and roadbeds.
Why is it important in North Carolina?
- In North Carolina, we do a lot of farming so we need soil and without it, we would not have any plants like vegetables or fruits.
What type of soil is found in North Carolina?
Cecil Soil
- Cecil soil is a type of deep, well-drained soil found on the slopes and ridges of the Piedmont region. This soil is formed from weathered felsic, igneous and metamorphic rock. Over half of the Cecil soil in North Carolina is cultivated for growing crops such as corn, tobacco and cotton. The other half is used for pastures and forestland. Cecil clay, a fertile red clay soil containing decomposed granite and quartz.
Sandhill Soil
- Sandhill soil is a loose, gray sandy soil, commonly found in the Coastal Plain region of North Carolina. Oftentimes, the top layer of this soil is bleached white with underlying layers ranging in color from brown to reddish-brown. Because sandhill soil is low in organic matter and very dry, it is not well suited for agriculture.
Organic Soils
- Organic soils are typical in wetland areas such as marshes, swamps' and bogs. Organic soils form in areas where high rainfall and poor drainage allow organic matter to collect over time. Organic soils are mostly in the tidewater and lower coastal regions of the Coastal Plain, although they can be in almost any area of the state. Organic soils are often black and mucky and contain high amounts of peat, which is partially decomposed vegetative matter.
soil conservation methods
Crop Rotation
Kelly Gomez
Email: kelly_gomez@student.whiteville.k12.nc.us
Location: Whiteville, NC, United States
Phone: (910) 234-8095