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Physical weathering, also called mechanical weathering or disaggregation, is the class of processes that causes the disintegration of rocks without chemical change. Physical weathering involves the breakdown of rocks into smaller fragments through processes such as expansion and contraction, mainly due to temperature changes.
Rock formations are usually the result of weathering and erosion sculpting the existing rock. The term rock formation can also refer to specific sedimentary strata or other rock unit in stratigraphic and petrologic studies. A rock structure can be created in any rock type or combination:
Abrasion in a stream or river channel occurs when the sediment carried by a river scours the bed and banks, contributing significantly to erosion. In addition to chemical and physical weathering of hydraulic action, freeze-thaw cycles, and more, there is a suite of processes which have long been considered to contribute significantly to bedrock ...
Weathering and erosion break the original rock down into smaller fragments and carry away dissolved material. This fragmented material accumulates and is buried by additional material. While an individual grain of sand is still a member of the class of rock it was formed from, a rock made up of such grains fused together is sedimentary.
Erosion is distinct from weathering which involves no movement. [1] [2] Removal of rock or soil as clastic sediment is referred to as physical or mechanical erosion; this contrasts with chemical erosion, where soil or rock material is removed from an area by dissolution. [3]
For example, erosion attributed to chemical weathering at the base of the rock due to the collection of dew near the surface. A mushroom rock may ultimately form from an originally flat area of hard rock overlying soft rock, similar to the pattern of rocks that form a waterfall. Weathering of the exposed hard rock layer eventually exposes the ...
Denudation incorporates the mechanical, biological, and chemical processes of erosion, weathering, and mass wasting. Denudation can involve the removal of both solid particles and dissolved material. These include sub-processes of cryofracture, insolation weathering, slaking, salt weathering, bioturbation, and anthropogenic impacts. [4]
Biology can influence very many geomorphic processes, ranging from biogeochemical processes controlling chemical weathering, to the influence of mechanical processes like burrowing and tree throw on soil development, to even controlling global erosion rates through modulation of climate through carbon dioxide balance.