fetch the distance over which the wind blows across the surface of water. A long fetch results in larger, more powerful waves, whereas a short fetch results in smaller waves. floodplain an area of low-lying ground adjacent to a river, formed mainly of river sediments and subject to flooding glacier a large body of ice, formed by an accumulation of snow, that flows downhill under the pressure of its own weight groundwater water that seeps into soil and gaps in rocks hard engineering a coastal management technique that involves using physical structures to control the effects of natural processes hotspot an area on the Earth’s surface where the crust is quite thin and volcanic activity can sometimes occur, even though it is not at a plate margin inselberg an isolated hill, knob, ridge, outcrop or small mountain that rises sharply from the surrounding landscape intermittent describes a stream that does not always flow leaching a process that occurs in areas of high rainfall; water runs through the soil, dissolving minerals and carrying them into the subsoil. Similar to a coffee pot where water drips through the grounds. longshore drift a process by which material is moved along a beach in the same direction as the prevailing wind mantle the layer of the Earth between the crust and the core meander a winding curve or bend in a river microclimate specific atmospheric conditions within a small area oxbow lake a U-shaped body of water created when a wide meander is cut off from the main channel of a river after it changes its course. In Australia it is referred to as a billabong. peninsula land jutting out into the sea
percolate filter through porous material such as soil perennial describes a stream that flows all year
permafrost a layer beneath the surface of the soil where the ground is permanently frozen physical processes continuing and naturally occurring actions such as wind and rain plateau an extensive area of flat land that is higher than the land around it. Plateaus are sometimes referred to as tablelands. precipitation the different forms in which moisture is returned to the Earth from the atmosphere, most commonly in the form of rain, hail, sleet and snow prevailing wind the main direction from which the wind blows rain shadow the dry area on the leeward side of a mountain; forms where mountains block rain-bearing winds river delta a landform created by deposition of sediment that is carried by a river as the flow leaves its mouth and enters slower-moving or stagnant water. Can take three main shapes: fan shaped, arrow shaped and bird-foot shaped. sediment material carried by water shell middens Indigenous Australian archaeological sites where the debris associated with eating shellfish and similar foods has accumulated over time soft engineering a coastal management technique where the natural environment is used to help reduce coastal erosion and river flooding soluble able to be dissolved in water stalactite a feature made of minerals, which forms from the ceiling of limestone caves, like an icicle. These are formed when water containing dissolved limestone drips from the roof of a cave, leaving a small amount of calcium carbonate behind. stalagmite a feature made of minerals found on the floor of limestone caves. These are formed when water containing dissolved limestone deposits on the cave floor and builds up. subduction when two tectonic plates converge, one will be forced under the other and into the mantle. The other plate will be pushed up, forming mountains. swash the movement of water in a wave as it breaks onto a beach tectonic plate one of the slow-moving plates that make up the Earth’s crust. Volcanoes and earthquakes often occur at the edges of plates. temperate zone describes the relatively mild climate experienced in the zones between the tropics and the polar circles transboundary river a river that flows through multiple countries, creating international borders transport the movement of eroded materials to a new location by elements such as wind and water
352 Jacaranda Humanities Alive 8 Victorian Curriculum Third Edition
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator