Glacial Erosion

2 Pages 460 Words

Describe and explain the location and variety of features of glacial erosion? (20 marks)

Glacial erosion has a massive impact on the landscape and can take thousands of metres off the landscape. There are a number of ways that the landscape can be eroded that form a number of varied features. These features are formed in different areas depending on the feature, as features can only be formed in certain areas.

The first landform that I’m going to discuss is a corrie. These are an armchair-shaped basin with a steep back wall and a rock basin. They are formed by a number of processes, nivation is considered to be one of the main initiators of corries. This happens when snow accumulates in hollows and freeze-thaw action beneath the snow causes the underlying rocks to disintegrate, any debris is carried out by summer meltwater streams. The snow patch would grow and the layers would become compressed to form ice. After this plucking is responsible for the steepening of the back wall and rotational movement enables abrasion for the deepening of the corrie basin. Corries locate up the side of mountains and have a very clear dominant orientation. The majority of corries will face north (in the northern hemisphere) this is because this side of the mountain will receive the least insolation so glacial processes will be very active e.g. freeze-thaw weathering. Other factors also have an affect on the location of corries as corries can still face south but they have to locate further up the mountain to form as it will not be cold enough for glacial processes to take place lower down the mountain side. Corries do not often face towards the sea either as, although still cold they get the warmer winds so were not as likely to have a corrie forming. Corries are also likely to from at higher altitudes as it will be colder.

Another feature of glacial erosion is an arête this is formed from a two adjacent corries back walls eroding towards e...