Home | Session 4 | Rivers Pg 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Rivers

Presented by Ellen Metzger
San Jose State University and BAESI

5. The Work of Rivers

A. Erosion (wearing away of rock or soil) by rivers to form:

1. Valleys: V-shaped and straight near the headwaters; wider and meandering downstream.
   
   
2. Waterfalls: formed where the river encounters a resistant rock that erodes very slowly.
   
   
3. Meanders
   
   Natural streams tend to flow in curving paths called meanders. Because water travels fastest on the outside of a meander, erosion occurs there (deposition occurs on the inside of the meander to form point bars).

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updated March 4, 2002

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