Q&A Hero

Q: Erosion by alpine glaciers creates A) V-shaped valleys. B) U-shaped valleys. C) drumlins. D) moraines.

Q: The two ways that glacial drift is deposited are A) as outwash and till. B) laminar and turbulent. C) as crevasses and meltwater. D) ablation and accumulation.

Q: A terminal moraine marks the A) farthest a glacier can spread from side-to-side. B) location where a glacier started to form. C) farthest point of a glacier's advance. D) location where outwash forms.

Q: Glacial striations are caused by A) rocks embedded in the ice. B) glacial outwash. C) terminal moraines. D) melting ice.

Q: Headward erosion of a group of cirques around a mountain may produce A) glacial lakes. B) an arete. C) a horn. D) a hanging valley.

Q: Blocks of ice buried in a glacial moraine often result in the formation of A) drumlins. B) roches moutonnees. C) small glacial lakeskettle lakes. D) eskers.

Q: Drumlins are made of A) bedrock. B) ice. C) drift. D) striations.

Q: An unsorted mixture of rock material that is deposited directly by melting ice is called A) drift. B) outwash. C) till. D) snow.

Q: The most powerful agent of erosion is A) stream flow. B) glacial action. C) action from waves and ocean currents. D) wind.

Q: Landforms created by glacial erosion include A) hanging valleys, cirques, and drumlins. B) cirques, drumlins, and roches moutonnees. C) eskers, kettle lakes, and hanging valleys. D) hanging valleys, cirques, and roches moutonnees.

Q: Common glacial landforms created of drift include moraines, A) aretes, and drumlins. B) drumlins, and roches moutonnees. C) and drumlins. D) roches moutonnees, and eskers.

Q: Glacial debris is generally A) well rounded and well sorted. B) a mishmash of shapes and sizes. C) unstriated. D) angular and well sorted.

Q: A moraine is a A) wind deposit. B) river deposit. C) glacial deposit. D) glacial erosional landform.

Q: The depositional landform at the farthest advance of a glacier is called a A) lateral moraine. B) medial moraine. C) terminal moraine. D) stratified moraine.

Q: Glacial deposits are characteristically A) well sorted and well rounded. B) composed of unsorted, angular rock fragments. C) asymmetrical rock debris. D) called outwash.

Q: Which of the following landscapes were not carved by glaciers? A) The Grand Canyon B) Yosemite National Park C) The Swiss Alps D) The Great Lakes of North America

Q: Striations are long parallel scratches in A) glaciers that show flow direction. B) bedrock that show the direction of the glaciers flow. C) bedrock that form next to roches moutonnes. D) bedrock that show outwash flow direction.

Q: The typical mountain valley that has been subjected to glaciation is shaped like A) a semi-circle. B) the letter "U." C) one half of a square. D) the letter "V."

Q: How do glaciers form and how do they move?

Q: What distinguishes a huge block of ice from a glacier?

Q: What is "frictional drag" and how does it affect the external movement of a glacier?

Q: Under what conditions does a glacier front advance? Under what conditions does a glacier front retreat?

Q: A glacier grows and shrinks with the seasons. When a glacier is growing, we say it is A) retreating. B) advancing. C) stationary. D) crevassing.

Q: Snow converts to glacial ice when subjected to A) decreasing temperature. B) pressure. C) basal sliding. D) plastic deformation.

Q: Which of the following is a necessary condition for an ice mass to be a glacier? A) Accumulation must exceed ablation. B) Basal sliding must occur. C) The ice mass must move under its own weight. D) Meltwater must be present.

Q: Glaciers will retreat when the amount of accumulation A) is less than the amount of ablation each year. B) exceeds the amount of ablation each year. C) is equal to the amount of ablation.

Q: The movement of a glacier is fastest A) at the bottom. B) at its surface. C) in the middle. D) along the sides.

Q: Glaciers lose mass by A) crevassing. B) calving. C) melting and calving. D) melting and crevassing.

Q: The annual amount of snow lost by a glacier is called A) accumulation. B) sublimation. C) ablation. D) sustation.

Q: The flow of a glacier begins A) after it has reached a critical mass. B) as pressure is exerted from behind. C) when the accumulating snow begins to melt. D) in the spring.

Q: A glacier forms when A) snow accumulates to form ice and the ice mass begins to flow under its own weight. B) temperatures do not rise above freezing. C) snow moves downslope under the influence of gravity. D) meltwater at the base of a snowmass contributes to downslope flow.

Q: Glaciers flow downslope. A glacier moves fastest A) when it begins to melt. B) at its surface and in the center. C) at its base and along its sides. D) when ablation exceeds accumulation.

Q: As a river overflows its channel, sediment is deposited along the channel banks. What type of sediment is deposited first? What type is deposited last?

Q: In what three ways does flowing water erode a stream channel?

Q: In the formation of a river delta, why is it that coarser material is deposited first, followed by medium and finer material farther out?

Q: Where and how do deltas form?

Q: How does energy relate to the way that streams meander?

Q: People settle on floodplains because A) the chance of flooding is very rare. B) floodplain soil is nutrient rich and good for agriculture. C) of river access. D) river access and rich soils.

Q: Fast moving, turbulent streams are highly erosive, they can A) carry large sediment particles and a large volume of sediment. B) meander and flood into deltas. C) deposit only fine silts and muds. D) form U-shaped valleys from gullies.

Q: The dumped sediment from a stream flowing into standing water is called a A) delta. B) floodplain. C) drainage basin. D) divide.

Q: Laminar flow produces A) a stream carrying both large and small particles. B) a stream carrying large particles. C) clear streams. D) less erosion.

Q: The work of surface water does all of the following except A) erosion. B) deposition. C) land subsidence. D) delta formation.

Q: The maximum sediment load of a stream depends on A) average stream speed. B) channel geometry. C) stream gradient. D) stream discharge.

Q: What is the lowest level to which water can erode land? A) sea level B) the bottom of the stream channel C) the level of the delta D) none of the above

Q: Point bars typically form A) on the inside bend of a curved stream channel. B) on the outside bend of a curved stream channel. C) in the middle of a straight stream channel. D) in the middle of a curved stream channel.

Q: Deltas form as A) periodic flooding clogs stream channels. B) erosion clogs stream channels. C) stream gradient decreases. D) streams enter a standing body of water.

Q: The Mississippi River has a huge delta. With each year and each episode of deposition, the river A) lengthens its course and the delta shrinks. B) becomes choked and shortens as the delta grows. C) course lengthens and the delta grows. D) shortens as the delta moves upriver.

Q: As a distributary channel in a delta becomes choked with sediment, the water in the channel A) disappears. B) will find a new route to its destination. C) will puddle and eventually form a lake. D) will move back upstream.

Q: As sediment travels in a downstream river, it changes by getting A) coarser. B) finer. C) more poorly sorted. D) more angular.

Q: Streams transport great quantities of sediment. The most effective transport of sediment occurs in A) laminar flow. B) turbulent flow. C) particle flow. D) groundwater flow.

Q: The transport of large particle sizes is greatest A) in turbulent streams. B) when stream speed is very fast. C) where the gradient exceeds the base level. D) on the inside of a meander.

Q: The ability to carry large particle sizes is dependent on the stream's A) laminar flow. B) velocity. C) discharge. D) channel geometry.

Q: The maximum volume of sediment a stream can carry is dependent on the stream's A) laminar flow. B) velocity. C) discharge. D) channel geometry.

Q: Meanders A) migrate downstream. B) shorten the stream. C) migrate upstream. D) remain in one place.

Q: Flowing water erodes stream channels by A) chemical weathering. B) hydraulic action and abrasion. C) chemical weathering, hydraulic action, and abrasion. D) channel erosion and abrasion.

Q: In a meandering stream, deposition of sediment occurs on A) the outer side of the meander. B) the inner side of a meander. C) the bottom of the stream channel. D) both sides of a meander.

Q: In a meandering river, erosion is most notable on A) the outer side of the meander. B) the inner side of a meander. C) both sides of a meander. D) the bottom of the stream channel.

Q: On a floodplain, stream flow is generally A) laminar. B) turbulent. C) meandering. D) channeled.

Q: Movement of water erodes stream channels. The main source of erosion comes from A) physical abrasion. B) chemical erosion. C) laminar flow. D) lithification.

Q: V-shaped valleys are A) "old-age" valleys. B) formed by glaciers. C) of depositional origin. D) common in mountainous regions.

Q: The headwater flow of a mountain stream is generally characterized as A) laminar. B) turbulent. C) meandering. D) all of these

Q: Which of the following are not produced by streams? A) floodplains B) deltas C) moraines D) alluvial fans

Q: In a delta environment we find that fine-grained sediments settle A) close to the mouth of the stream channel. B) far away from the mouth of the stream channel. C) both of these D) none of these

Q: In a delta environment the first grains to settle are A) light, fine-grained sediment. B) heavier, coarse-grained sediment. C) light, medium-grained sediment. D) heavy and light mixed grains.

Q: On a floodplain, the sediment grains away from the main river channel are A) coarse-grained sand and gravels. B) fine-grained silts and clays. C) well-sorted and well-rounded sand particles. D) all of these

Q: Which of the following is characteristic of mountain stream valleys? A) They are curvy and slow moving. B) They are V-shaped and have rapids. C) They have deltas. D) They are deep and wide.

Q: Flowing surface water alters the landscape in what ways? A) erosion B) deposition of sediments C) weathering D) It weathers and erodes sediments, and then it deposits sediment.

Q: Meandering streams are common in A) V-shaped valleys. B) natural levees. C) flat floodplain areas. D) areas of accumulation.

Q: In a hypothetical stream flowing downslope, stream discharge doubles and the cross-sectional area of the channel also doubles. For this situation, what will happen to the stream's speed?

Q: In a hypothetical stream flowing downslope, stream discharge doubles while the channel remains the same size and shape. For this situation, what will happen to the stream's speed?

Q: When the discharge of a stream increases, what happens to stream speed?

Q: What three factors affect stream speed?

Q: As water flows around a bending and looping river channel, maximum flow speed and erosion occurs A) at a point bar. B) on the outside of each bend. C) on the inside of each bend. D) on both the outside and inside of the bending channel.

Q: Rivers tend to flow A) southward. B) downhill due to gravity. C) northward. D) toward the Equator.

Q: Common drainage networks include the A) rectangular and divide drainage patterns. B) radiating and undulating drainage patterns. C) dentritic, radial, and trellis drainage patterns. D) trellis, subsident, and perched drainage patterns.

Q: Water from streams in northern Utah flow to A) the Atlantic Ocean. B) the Gulf of Mexico. C) the Pacific Ocean. D) Colorado.

Q: As a stream flows downslope, if stream discharge doubles and the cross-sectional area of the channel also doubles, what happens to the average stream speed? A) Average stream speed stays the same. B) Average stream speed decreases. C) Average stream speed increases. D) Not enough information is given.

Q: What is stream channel geometry? A) The change in elevation of a stream. B) The shape of a stream channel as seen on a map. C) The amount of turbulence and laminar flow in a stream. D) The cross-sectional area and cross-sectional shape of a stream channel.

Q: Riding down a river in an old canoe, if the discharge of the river increases a little and the width and the depth of the river stay the same, the speed of the river will A) decrease. B) increase. C) stay the same. D) become unpredictable.

Q: Riding down a river in an old canoe, if the discharge of the river does not increase and the river gets very wide and deep, the speed of the river will A) decrease. B) increase. C) stay the same. D) become unpredictable.