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Sediment is a solid material that is transported to a new location where it is deposited. [1] It occurs naturally and, through the processes of weathering and erosion, is broken down and subsequently transported by the action of wind, water, or ice or by the force of gravity acting on the particles.
Folding in sediments is analysed with the principle of original horizontality, which states that sediments are deposited at their angle of repose which, for most types of sediment, is essentially horizontal. Thus, when the younging direction is known, the rocks can be "unfolded" and interpreted according to the contained sedimentary information.
This is because sediment grain size analysis throughout a profile allows inference into the erosion or accretion rates possible if shore dynamics are modified. Planners and managers should also be aware that the coastal environment is dynamic and contextual science should be evaluated before the implementation of any shore profile modification.
Uluru (Ayers Rock) is a large sandstone formation in Northern Territory, Australia.. Sedimentary rocks can be subdivided into four groups based on the processes responsible for their formation: clastic sedimentary rocks, biochemical (biogenic) sedimentary rocks, chemical sedimentary rocks, and a fourth category for "other" sedimentary rocks formed by impacts, volcanism, and other minor processes.
The rate of sedimentation is the thickness of sediment accumulated per unit time. [8] For suspended load, this can be expressed mathematically by the Exner equation. [9] Rates of sedimentation vary from less than 3 millimeters (0.12 in) per thousand years for pelagic sediment to several meters per thousand years in portions of major river deltas.
Sediment and the particles of clastic sedimentary rocks can be further classified by grain size. The smallest sediments are clay , followed by silt , sand , and gravel . Some systems include cobbles and boulders as measurements.
Sediment transport is the movement of solid particles , typically due to a combination of gravity acting on the sediment, and the movement of the fluid in which the sediment is entrained.
Rounded erratic boulders of crystalline rock composition next to Ordovician limestone bank along the shoreline in NW Osmussaar, Estonia.. In geology, drift is a name for all sediment (clay, silt, sand, gravel, boulders) transported by a glacier and deposited directly by or from the ice, or by glacial meltwater.