P1C 10Landscape Features Caused by Water in Hot Arid Environ.

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What is the role of water in hot arid regions?

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Despite low rainfall, water is a significant agent of weathering and erosion in hot arid regions.

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What is weathering?

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Weathering is the breakdown of rocks.

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What is erosion?

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Erosion is the removal of broken material.

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What are the two main types of weathering in hot deserts?

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Exfoliation or Disintegration and Salt Crystallization Weathering (Salt-weathering).

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What causes exfoliation or disintegration in deserts?

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The large daily temperature range causes outer layers of rock to expand and contract, leading to peeling. Rapid cooling from a thunderstorm can also cause disintegration.

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What is salt crystallization weathering?

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High temperatures draw saline groundwater to the rock surface. As water evaporates, salt crystals grow in cracks, causing granular disintegration of the rock.

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What causes erosion in arid regions?

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Erosion can be caused by wind, water, or gravity. Intense thunderstorms can cause flash floods with significant erosional power.

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What are wadis?

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Wadis are dry river valleys created by infrequent flash floods, typically dry except during rainfall.

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What are alluvial fans?

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Alluvial fans are cone-shaped deposits of sediment formed when fast-flowing water spreads out onto a flatter plain, common in arid regions.

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How are mesas and buttes formed?

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Rain storms erode plateaus, carving canyons and leaving flat-topped mesas. Further erosion reduces mesas to buttes.