ERS103H5 Lecture Notes - Lecture 15: Granular Material, Regolith, Mudflow
Document Summary
The downslope motion of rock, regolith (soil, sediment, and debris), snow, and ice. Mass movement is driven by gravity acting on any sloping surface. Loose granular material assumes a slope angle due to the particle size and the shape and the surface roughness of fragments. * all slopes are unstable; they change continuously. Mass movement is often accelerated by human activity. Destabilizing events can be caused by triggers such as: Changes in slope loads steepness and strength/support. * steeping a slope beyond the angle of repose is a common cause of slope failure either through nature or man. * classification of mass movement events - 4 types. The type of material (rock, regolith, snow, or ice) The rate of movement (fast, intermediate, or slow) The nature of the mass (chotic, coherent, or slurry) * creep is the slow downhill movement of regolith due to seasonal expansion and contraction of regolith. Wetting and drying, and freezing and thawing, are contributing factors.
