Landscapes over time

Objective: Explain drainage basin and meander, distinguish their meanings, and apply them to a described case.

Drainage basin: A drainage basin is the land area whose surface runoff drains toward a common outlet. Meander: A meander is a river bend influenced by erosion and deposition along the channel. Landforms integrate uplift, weathering, transport, deposition, and changing environmental conditions. Some changes are abrupt, while others accumulate over long intervals. River bends involve both removal and accumulation rather than uniform erosion everywhere. Coastal systems exchange sediment across connected areas, so a structure can change neighboring shorelines. Use multiple observations to reconstruct a landscape and distinguish current processes from inherited features of an earlier environment. Application: Rain on connected hillsides flows into one river system. This most directly illustrates drainage basin. A channel erodes an outer bend and deposits inside it. This most directly illustrates meander.

Objective: Explain delta and coastal balance, distinguish their meanings, and apply them to a described case.

Delta: A delta forms where sediment accumulation near a river mouth outpaces its removal. Coastal balance: Coastal landforms reflect waves, currents, sediment supply, and changes in relative sea level. Landforms integrate uplift, weathering, transport, deposition, and changing environmental conditions. Some changes are abrupt, while others accumulate over long intervals. River bends involve both removal and accumulation rather than uniform erosion everywhere. Coastal systems exchange sediment across connected areas, so a structure can change neighboring shorelines. Use multiple observations to reconstruct a landscape and distinguish current processes from inherited features of an earlier environment. Application: Sediment builds new land where a river enters a lake. This most directly illustrates delta. A beach narrows after sediment supply declines. This most directly illustrates coastal balance.

Objective: Explain landscape timescale and human landscape change, distinguish their meanings, and apply them to a described case.

Landscape timescale: Different landform processes act over times ranging from sudden events to millions of years. Human landscape change: Land use and engineering can alter runoff, sediment movement, and slope stability. Landforms integrate uplift, weathering, transport, deposition, and changing environmental conditions. Some changes are abrupt, while others accumulate over long intervals. River bends involve both removal and accumulation rather than uniform erosion everywhere. Coastal systems exchange sediment across connected areas, so a structure can change neighboring shorelines. Use multiple observations to reconstruct a landscape and distinguish current processes from inherited features of an earlier environment. Application: A flood changes a channel faster than a mountain range develops. This most directly illustrates landscape timescale. Paving a watershed increases rapid surface runoff. This most directly illustrates human landscape change.