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Key physical geography terms
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GCSE physical geography (rivers, coasts, weather, ecosystems) uses a core set of words. Getting them right makes your answers precise.
Shaping the land
Weathering: rock is broken down where it is, by the weather, chemicals or living things.
Erosion: rock is worn away and carried off by water, ice or wind.
Transportation: eroded material is moved along.
Deposition: material is dropped when water, ice or wind loses energy.
Mass movement: rock or soil moves downhill under gravity.
Erosion: rock is worn away and carried off by water, ice or wind.
Transportation: eroded material is moved along.
Deposition: material is dropped when water, ice or wind loses energy.
Mass movement: rock or soil moves downhill under gravity.
Weather, climate and water
Weather: the day-to-day state of the atmosphere (rain, wind, temperature).
Climate: the average weather of a place over a long time, usually 30 years.
The water cycle: water evaporates from the sea, condenses into clouds, falls as precipitation, then infiltrates the soil or flows over the surface as run-off back to rivers and the sea.
Climate: the average weather of a place over a long time, usually 30 years.
The water cycle: water evaporates from the sea, condenses into clouds, falls as precipitation, then infiltrates the soil or flows over the surface as run-off back to rivers and the sea.
The Earth and ecosystems
The Earth's outer layer, the crust, is split into tectonic plates. Most earthquakes and volcanoes happen near plate boundaries.
An ecosystem is a community of living things and their non-living environment, such as soil, water and climate.
A biome is a very large ecosystem, such as tropical rainforest or desert.
An ecosystem is a community of living things and their non-living environment, such as soil, water and climate.
A biome is a very large ecosystem, such as tropical rainforest or desert.
Explain the difference between weathering and erosion.
- Weathering breaks rock down in place, for example by freeze-thaw.
- Erosion wears rock away and carries it off, for example by waves or a river.
Answer: Weathering happens in place; erosion involves movement of the material.
Weathering = breakdown in place; erosion = worn away and moved; transportation; deposition = dropped when energy falls; mass movement = downhill under gravity. Weather is day to day; climate is the long-term average. Plates, ecosystems and biomes.
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