Download Physical Weathering Day One

Physical Weathering
Day One
Physical Weathering
The process that breaks down rock into
smaller pieces.
Temperature Change
• Increase in temperature will cause rock to
expand
• Decrease in temperature will cause rock to
shrink
• Repeated will cause rock to crumble
Where on Earth would physical
weathering from temperature
changes be most common? Least
common?
Pressure Change
• Rocks formed underground can be
exposed to the surface
• As the rock appears above ground the
pressure changes
• Exfoliation: the outer layer of the rock
slowly wears away because of a change in
pressure
Where is the example of exfoliation?
Animal Action
• Animals can cause physical weathering by
digging.
• New rocks, soils, and other materials become
exposed at the surface
• Materials exposed at the surface are more likely
to undergo weathering than those below.
Wind, Water, Gravity
• Abrasion is the breaking down and wearing away
of rock material by the mechanical action of other
rocks.
• Three agents of physical weathering that can
cause abrasion are moving water, wind, and
gravity.
• Rocks suspended in a glacier can also cause
abrasion of other rocks on Earth’s surface.
Describe the weathering process in
this picture.
Describe how these rocks
weather.
Plant Growth
• Roots of plants start out as tiny strands that may
grow in small cracks in rocks.
• As the roots grow, they put more pressure on the
rock, causing the rock to expand and eventually
break apart.
What’s happening in this
picture?