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    Rivers Pt4 - River Features

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    Prudence Rwatirera
    In the upper course of a river, the gradients are steep and channels are narrow, allowing for significant vertical erosion. This forms features like V-shaped valleys with steep sides, interlocking spurs as the winding river carves around resistant rocks, rapids over uneven rock layers, gorges formed by waterfalls eroding soft rock from under hard rock layers, and potholes drilled into the riverbed by swirling trapped sediments.

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    Rivers Pt4 - River Features

    Uploaded by

    Prudence Rwatirera
    65 views4 pages
    In the upper course of a river, the gradients are steep and channels are narrow, allowing for significant vertical erosion. This forms features like V-shaped valleys with steep sides, interlocking spurs as the winding river carves around resistant rocks, rapids over uneven rock layers, gorges formed by waterfalls eroding soft rock from under hard rock layers, and potholes drilled into the riverbed by swirling trapped sediments.

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    Rivers Pt4- River Features (1)

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    In the upper course of a river, the gradients are steep and channels are narrow, allowing for significant vertical erosion. This forms features like V-shaped valleys with steep sides, interlocking spurs as the winding river carves around resistant rocks, rapids over uneven rock layers, gorges formed by waterfalls eroding soft rock from under hard rock layers, and potholes drilled into the riverbed by swirling trapped sediments.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    65 views4 pages

    Rivers Pt4 - River Features

    Uploaded by

    Prudence Rwatirera
    In the upper course of a river, the gradients are steep and channels are narrow, allowing for significant vertical erosion. This forms features like V-shaped valleys with steep sides, interlocking spurs as the winding river carves around resistant rocks, rapids over uneven rock layers, gorges formed by waterfalls eroding soft rock from under hard rock layers, and potholes drilled into the riverbed by swirling trapped sediments.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    of 4

    The upper course of the river: Features of erosion

    In the upper course of a river gradients are steep and river channels are narrow.
    Vertical erosion is greatest. As a result of this typical features include potholes, steep
    valley sides, interlocking spurs, rapids, gorges, and waterfalls are formed.
    V shaped valleys
    V-Shaped valleys are found in the upper course of the river and are a result of vertical
    erosion by the river, weathering of the valley sides and mass wasting of the weathered
    materials. V-Shaped valleys are deep river valleys with steep sides that look like a
    letter V when a cross section of them is taken, hence the name.
    The energy possessed by the river near to its source is used to transport large
    boulders along its bed. This results in the river cutting rapidly downwards in the form
    of abrasion(corrasion). This process is known as vertical erosion. With time the valley
    sides are weakened by weathering and vertical erosion continues at the base of the
    valley deepening the channel. Not much lateral erosion takes place, so the channel
    and valley remain relatively narrow. Mass movement of materials occurs down the
    valley sides, gradually creating distinctive V-shaped valleys. This material is gradually
    transported by the river when there is enough energy to do so.

    Interlocking Spurs
    The river always takes the easiest path down a slope. It tends to go around rocks that
    are resistant. This often results in the river taking a winding course. As it continues to
    wind the bends in the river become more pronounced because the water on the
    outside of the bends flows more quickly and eventually causes projections of highlands
    called spurs
    Rapids
    Rapids are sections of rough, turbulent water (sections of a river where the riverbed
    has a relatively steep gradient, causing an increase in water velocity and turbulence).
    They are normally found in a river’s upper course and are formed where there are
    layers of hard and soft rocks. The layers of soft rock erode much quicker than layers
    of hard rock. This makes the bed of the river uneven creating a rough turbulent. Rapids
    can become popular with tourists who want to raft down them. Some of most popular
    rafting rivers are the Nile in Uganda and the Zambezi in Zimbabwe. However, rapids
    can cause problems with transport, ships cannot travel up and down rapids and it is
    very hard to build bridges across them. They are also extremely dangerous if people
    fall into them.
    Waterfalls and gorges.

    Waterfalls form where a horizontal layer of hard rock lies on top of a layer of soft rock
    in a river valley. As the river passes over the hard rock, the soft rock below is eroded.
    It is undercut and this leaves a layer of hard rock which overhangs the layer of the soft
    rock. The drop gets steeper as the river erodes the soft rock beneath by processes
    such as abrasion and hydraulic action. As the water flows over the overhang it creates
    a plunge pool in the soft rock below. Eventually, the overhang becomes unsupported
    and it will collapse. If the processes of undercutting and collapse are repeated over a
    long period of time, the waterfall will retreat upstream forming a deep, steep sided
    valley called a gorge.
    Potholes

    A pothole

    Potholes are smooth, rounded hollows formed in the bedrock of the riverbed by vertical
    erosion. They are found in the upper course of a river where it has enough potential
    energy to erode vertically, and its flow is turbulent. In the upper course of a river, its
    load is large and mainly transported by traction along the riverbed. When the load
    becomes trapped in a depression, the flow of eddie currents above the trapped
    pebbles causes move in a swirling motion. This way, the pebbles drill into the riverbed,
    a process called corrasion/abrasion. In time, the pothole becomes more circular and
    deeper.

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