Exam 17: Streams and Floods: The Geology of Running Water

Although the Nile River is longer,the Amazon River has the greatest discharge of any stream on Earth.

At a waterfall,where two sedimentary lithologies are juxtaposed,which lithology is more likely to form the cliff over which the water falls?

V-shaped stream valleys result from the downcutting of stream erosion and ____________.

With time,a river may erode terrain to produce a low-lying plain termed a(n)____________.

Ultimately,the base level of a stream valley can be no lower than ____________.

The lowest elevation to which a stream can downcut is the ____________.

In a region with prominent orthogonal sets of joints,a ____________ drainage network is expected.

Which has greater capacity?

The primary stream fed by tributaries within a drainage basin is termed a ____________.

In the region immediately surrounding an isolated volcano,a ____________ drainage network is expected.

Braided streams ____________.

If a 50-year flood occurs on the Mississippi River in 2010,what is the probability that a flood of the same magnitude will occur in 2011?

All else being equal,water will flow faster in a stream that has a ____________.

Moving away from its headwaters,the flow of a stream usually becomes more ____________.

Within a meander,where is sediment most likely to be deposited?

The deltas of all major rivers consist of multiple radiating lobes of sediment in a "bird's foot" configuration,similar to the Mississippi River delta.

The shape of a delta is primarily determined by ____________.

The discharge of a river traveling through a humid region will typically ____________ downstream;the discharge of a river traveling through an arid region will typically ____________ downstream.

The deepest part of the channel,where the stream flows fastest,is the ____________.

All the water in rivers and streams arrives directly from rainfall runoff.