Weathering Process
Weathering is the breaking down or dissolving of rocks and minerals on Earth’s surface. Water, ice, acids, salt, plants, animals, and changes in temperature are all agents of weathering.
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Weathering processes are responsible for formation of not only regolith and soils, but also erosion and mass movements. As very little or no motion of materials takes place in weathering, it is an in-situ or on-site process.
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Weathering is the mechanical disintegration and chemical decomposition of rocks under the action of climate.
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Mechanical weathering, also called physical weathering, causes rocks to crumble.
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Exfoliation is a form of mechanical weathering in which curved plates of rock are stripped from rock below. This results in exfoliation domes or dome-like hills and rounded boulders.
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Exfoliation domes are best developed in granitic rock. Yosemite National Park has exceptional examples of exfoliation domes.
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Chemical weathering transforms the original material into a substance with a different composition and different physical characteristics.
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Mechanical weathering is a slow process unlike chemical weathering which causes immediate reaction if there is any increase in temperature or moisture.
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The rate of chemical weathering is greatly accelerated by the presence of warm temperatures and moisture. Under high temperature and pressure, vegetation fossils and animal fossils transforms into Coal and Crude oil respectively.
