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15 Dec 2025
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Glaciation Process and Impact – SQA Higher Geography Lithosphere
Amy<3
@p.o.v_amy
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Glaciation and Erosion Processes
Ever wondered how those dramatic mountain landscapes in Scotland were formed? It all starts with glaciation - essentially an ice age where global temperatures drop by just 3°C. Glaciers are basically moving rivers of ice that form when layers of snow compress over time, usually on the shaded northern sides of mountains.
These glaciers are incredibly powerful erosion machines. Freeze-thaw weathering happens when water gets trapped in rock cracks, freezes , then melts repeatedly until the rock shatters into angular pieces called moraine. This debris gets frozen into the glacier and becomes a natural scraping tool.
Plucking occurs when rocks become frozen to the glacier's base or sides. As the ice moves, it either breaks away from the rock or literally pulls chunks of rock from the ground - like a massive game of tug-of-war where the ice usually wins.
Abrasion works like giant sandpaper - rocks picked up by the glacier rub against the bedrock as the ice moves, creating scratch marks called striations. This process transforms smooth ice into a powerful scouring pad that carves deep into the landscape.
Key Point: Think of glaciers as nature's ultimate bulldozers - they don't just push material around, they actively grab, scrape, and carve the landscape beneath them.
Formation of Mountain Features
The corrie formation process creates those distinctive bowl-shaped hollows you see in mountain areas. Starting around 2 million years ago, snow compressed into solid ice called neve, then moved downhill through rotational sliding. The combination of plucking and abrasion carved out deep hollows, with water flowing through cracks called bergschrunds to deepen the erosion.
When glaciers eventually melted, they left behind bowl-shaped corries. If water collects in these bowls, you get a tarn - those beautiful mountain lakes. Multiple corries on one mountain create sharp ridges called arêtes between them, or pointed pyramidal peaks when three or more corries meet at the summit.
U-shaped valleys tell a similar story of glacial power. Rivers originally carved narrow V-shaped valleys, but glaciers widened and deepened them into characteristic U-shapes through the same plucking and abrasion processes. When the ice disappeared, it left behind misfit streams - tiny rivers in valleys far too big for them.
Hanging valleys form where smaller tributary glaciers couldn't erode as deeply as the main glacier. These create spectacular waterfalls dropping from high ledges into the main valley below.
Key Point: These landforms are like geological fingerprints - each one tells the story of how ice sculpted the landscape millions of years ago.
Glacial Deposition Features
When glaciers finally lose their strength and start melting, they dump all their collected material in distinctive patterns. Boulder clay or till - a mixture of clay and angular rocks - covers many lowland areas that were once under ice. This creates some fascinating landscape features that geographers love to study.
Drumlins are those smooth, rounded hills over 100m high that dot the landscape like giant whale backs. They form when friction between ice and rock causes the glacier to deposit its load in streamlined mounds. You'll often find them in groups, all pointing in the direction the ice was moving.
Eskers look like long, winding ridges snaking across the landscape. These form inside glaciers when rivers and streams carry sand and gravel, building up ridge-like deposits that remain when the ice retreats. They're basically fossilised river beds from inside ancient glaciers.
Terminal moraines mark where glaciers finally gave up the fight against warmer temperatures. All that rock, stone, and debris the glacier had been carrying gets dumped in a pile at the ice front. Erratics are the rock superstars - massive boulders transported hundreds of miles and left sitting incongruously among completely different rock types.
Key Point: These depositional features are like a glacier's final signature on the landscape - showing exactly where and how the ice finally surrendered to warming temperatures.
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Wow, I am really amazed. I just tried the app because I've seen it advertised many times and was absolutely stunned. This app is THE HELP you want for school and above all, it offers so many things, such as workouts and fact sheets, which have been VERY helpful to me personally.
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Just amazing. Let's me revise 10x better, this app is a quick 10/10. I highly recommend it to anyone. I can watch and search for notes. I can save them in the subject folder. I can revise it any time when I come back. If you haven't tried this app, you're really missing out.
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This app has made me feel so much more confident in my exam prep, not only through boosting my own self confidence through the features that allow you to connect with others and feel less alone, but also through the way the app itself is centred around making you feel better. It is easy to navigate, fun to use, and helpful to anyone struggling in absolutely any way.
David K
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The app's just great! All I have to do is enter the topic in the search bar and I get the response real fast. I don't have to watch 10 YouTube videos to understand something, so I'm saving my time. Highly recommended!
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In school I was really bad at maths but thanks to the app, I am doing better now. I am so grateful that you made the app.
Greenlight Bonnie
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very reliable app to help and grow your ideas of Maths, English and other related topics in your works. please use this app if your struggling in areas, this app is key for that. wish I'd of done a review before. and it's also free so don't worry about that.
Rohan U
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I know a lot of apps use fake accounts to boost their reviews but this app deserves it all. Originally I was getting 4 in my English exams and this time I got a grade 7. I didn’t even know about this app three days until the exam and it has helped A LOT. Please actually trust me and use it as I’m sure you too will see developments.
Xander S
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THE QUIZES AND FLASHCARDS ARE SO USEFUL AND I LOVE THE SCHOOLGPT. IT ALSO IS LITREALLY LIKE CHATGPT BUT SMARTER!! HELPED ME WITH MY MASCARA PROBLEMS TOO!! AS WELL AS MY REAL SUBJECTS ! DUHHH 😍😁😲🤑💗✨🎀😮
Elisha
iOS user
This apps acc the goat. I find revision so boring but this app makes it so easy to organize it all and then you can ask the freeeee ai to test yourself so good and you can easily upload your own stuff. highly recommend as someone taking mocks now
Paul T
iOS user
The app is very easy to use and well designed. I have found everything I was looking for so far and have been able to learn a lot from the presentations! I will definitely use the app for a class assignment! And of course it also helps a lot as an inspiration.
Stefan S
iOS user
This app is really great. There are so many study notes and help [...]. My problem subject is French, for example, and the app has so many options for help. Thanks to this app, I have improved my French. I would recommend it to anyone.
Samantha Klich
Android user
Wow, I am really amazed. I just tried the app because I've seen it advertised many times and was absolutely stunned. This app is THE HELP you want for school and above all, it offers so many things, such as workouts and fact sheets, which have been VERY helpful to me personally.
Anna
iOS user
Best app on earth! no words because it’s too good
Thomas R
iOS user
Just amazing. Let's me revise 10x better, this app is a quick 10/10. I highly recommend it to anyone. I can watch and search for notes. I can save them in the subject folder. I can revise it any time when I come back. If you haven't tried this app, you're really missing out.
Basil
Android user
This app has made me feel so much more confident in my exam prep, not only through boosting my own self confidence through the features that allow you to connect with others and feel less alone, but also through the way the app itself is centred around making you feel better. It is easy to navigate, fun to use, and helpful to anyone struggling in absolutely any way.
David K
iOS user
The app's just great! All I have to do is enter the topic in the search bar and I get the response real fast. I don't have to watch 10 YouTube videos to understand something, so I'm saving my time. Highly recommended!
Sudenaz Ocak
Android user
In school I was really bad at maths but thanks to the app, I am doing better now. I am so grateful that you made the app.
Greenlight Bonnie
Android user
very reliable app to help and grow your ideas of Maths, English and other related topics in your works. please use this app if your struggling in areas, this app is key for that. wish I'd of done a review before. and it's also free so don't worry about that.
Rohan U
Android user
I know a lot of apps use fake accounts to boost their reviews but this app deserves it all. Originally I was getting 4 in my English exams and this time I got a grade 7. I didn’t even know about this app three days until the exam and it has helped A LOT. Please actually trust me and use it as I’m sure you too will see developments.
Xander S
iOS user
THE QUIZES AND FLASHCARDS ARE SO USEFUL AND I LOVE THE SCHOOLGPT. IT ALSO IS LITREALLY LIKE CHATGPT BUT SMARTER!! HELPED ME WITH MY MASCARA PROBLEMS TOO!! AS WELL AS MY REAL SUBJECTS ! DUHHH 😍😁😲🤑💗✨🎀😮
Elisha
iOS user
This apps acc the goat. I find revision so boring but this app makes it so easy to organize it all and then you can ask the freeeee ai to test yourself so good and you can easily upload your own stuff. highly recommend as someone taking mocks now
Paul T
iOS user
Glaciation Process and Impact – SQA Higher Geography Lithosphere
Amy<3
@p.o.v_amy
Glaciation refers to ice ages when global temperatures drop by 3°C, causing massive glaciers to form and reshape the landscape. These powerful rivers of ice carve out stunning landforms through erosion and deposition processes that you can still see in... Show more
Glaciation and Erosion Processes
Ever wondered how those dramatic mountain landscapes in Scotland were formed? It all starts with glaciation - essentially an ice age where global temperatures drop by just 3°C. Glaciers are basically moving rivers of ice that form when layers of snow compress over time, usually on the shaded northern sides of mountains.
These glaciers are incredibly powerful erosion machines. Freeze-thaw weathering happens when water gets trapped in rock cracks, freezes , then melts repeatedly until the rock shatters into angular pieces called moraine. This debris gets frozen into the glacier and becomes a natural scraping tool.
Plucking occurs when rocks become frozen to the glacier's base or sides. As the ice moves, it either breaks away from the rock or literally pulls chunks of rock from the ground - like a massive game of tug-of-war where the ice usually wins.
Abrasion works like giant sandpaper - rocks picked up by the glacier rub against the bedrock as the ice moves, creating scratch marks called striations. This process transforms smooth ice into a powerful scouring pad that carves deep into the landscape.
Key Point: Think of glaciers as nature's ultimate bulldozers - they don't just push material around, they actively grab, scrape, and carve the landscape beneath them.
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Formation of Mountain Features
The corrie formation process creates those distinctive bowl-shaped hollows you see in mountain areas. Starting around 2 million years ago, snow compressed into solid ice called neve, then moved downhill through rotational sliding. The combination of plucking and abrasion carved out deep hollows, with water flowing through cracks called bergschrunds to deepen the erosion.
When glaciers eventually melted, they left behind bowl-shaped corries. If water collects in these bowls, you get a tarn - those beautiful mountain lakes. Multiple corries on one mountain create sharp ridges called arêtes between them, or pointed pyramidal peaks when three or more corries meet at the summit.
U-shaped valleys tell a similar story of glacial power. Rivers originally carved narrow V-shaped valleys, but glaciers widened and deepened them into characteristic U-shapes through the same plucking and abrasion processes. When the ice disappeared, it left behind misfit streams - tiny rivers in valleys far too big for them.
Hanging valleys form where smaller tributary glaciers couldn't erode as deeply as the main glacier. These create spectacular waterfalls dropping from high ledges into the main valley below.
Key Point: These landforms are like geological fingerprints - each one tells the story of how ice sculpted the landscape millions of years ago.
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Glacial Deposition Features
When glaciers finally lose their strength and start melting, they dump all their collected material in distinctive patterns. Boulder clay or till - a mixture of clay and angular rocks - covers many lowland areas that were once under ice. This creates some fascinating landscape features that geographers love to study.
Drumlins are those smooth, rounded hills over 100m high that dot the landscape like giant whale backs. They form when friction between ice and rock causes the glacier to deposit its load in streamlined mounds. You'll often find them in groups, all pointing in the direction the ice was moving.
Eskers look like long, winding ridges snaking across the landscape. These form inside glaciers when rivers and streams carry sand and gravel, building up ridge-like deposits that remain when the ice retreats. They're basically fossilised river beds from inside ancient glaciers.
Terminal moraines mark where glaciers finally gave up the fight against warmer temperatures. All that rock, stone, and debris the glacier had been carrying gets dumped in a pile at the ice front. Erratics are the rock superstars - massive boulders transported hundreds of miles and left sitting incongruously among completely different rock types.
Key Point: These depositional features are like a glacier's final signature on the landscape - showing exactly where and how the ice finally surrendered to warming temperatures.
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What is the Knowunity AI companion?
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The app is very easy to use and well designed. I have found everything I was looking for so far and have been able to learn a lot from the presentations! I will definitely use the app for a class assignment! And of course it also helps a lot as an inspiration.
Stefan S
iOS user
This app is really great. There are so many study notes and help [...]. My problem subject is French, for example, and the app has so many options for help. Thanks to this app, I have improved my French. I would recommend it to anyone.
Samantha Klich
Android user
Wow, I am really amazed. I just tried the app because I've seen it advertised many times and was absolutely stunned. This app is THE HELP you want for school and above all, it offers so many things, such as workouts and fact sheets, which have been VERY helpful to me personally.
Anna
iOS user
Best app on earth! no words because it’s too good
Thomas R
iOS user
Just amazing. Let's me revise 10x better, this app is a quick 10/10. I highly recommend it to anyone. I can watch and search for notes. I can save them in the subject folder. I can revise it any time when I come back. If you haven't tried this app, you're really missing out.
Basil
Android user
This app has made me feel so much more confident in my exam prep, not only through boosting my own self confidence through the features that allow you to connect with others and feel less alone, but also through the way the app itself is centred around making you feel better. It is easy to navigate, fun to use, and helpful to anyone struggling in absolutely any way.
David K
iOS user
The app's just great! All I have to do is enter the topic in the search bar and I get the response real fast. I don't have to watch 10 YouTube videos to understand something, so I'm saving my time. Highly recommended!
Sudenaz Ocak
Android user
In school I was really bad at maths but thanks to the app, I am doing better now. I am so grateful that you made the app.
Greenlight Bonnie
Android user
very reliable app to help and grow your ideas of Maths, English and other related topics in your works. please use this app if your struggling in areas, this app is key for that. wish I'd of done a review before. and it's also free so don't worry about that.
Rohan U
Android user
I know a lot of apps use fake accounts to boost their reviews but this app deserves it all. Originally I was getting 4 in my English exams and this time I got a grade 7. I didn’t even know about this app three days until the exam and it has helped A LOT. Please actually trust me and use it as I’m sure you too will see developments.
Xander S
iOS user
THE QUIZES AND FLASHCARDS ARE SO USEFUL AND I LOVE THE SCHOOLGPT. IT ALSO IS LITREALLY LIKE CHATGPT BUT SMARTER!! HELPED ME WITH MY MASCARA PROBLEMS TOO!! AS WELL AS MY REAL SUBJECTS ! DUHHH 😍😁😲🤑💗✨🎀😮
Elisha
iOS user
This apps acc the goat. I find revision so boring but this app makes it so easy to organize it all and then you can ask the freeeee ai to test yourself so good and you can easily upload your own stuff. highly recommend as someone taking mocks now
Paul T
iOS user
The app is very easy to use and well designed. I have found everything I was looking for so far and have been able to learn a lot from the presentations! I will definitely use the app for a class assignment! And of course it also helps a lot as an inspiration.
Stefan S
iOS user
This app is really great. There are so many study notes and help [...]. My problem subject is French, for example, and the app has so many options for help. Thanks to this app, I have improved my French. I would recommend it to anyone.
Samantha Klich
Android user
Wow, I am really amazed. I just tried the app because I've seen it advertised many times and was absolutely stunned. This app is THE HELP you want for school and above all, it offers so many things, such as workouts and fact sheets, which have been VERY helpful to me personally.
Anna
iOS user
Best app on earth! no words because it’s too good
Thomas R
iOS user
Just amazing. Let's me revise 10x better, this app is a quick 10/10. I highly recommend it to anyone. I can watch and search for notes. I can save them in the subject folder. I can revise it any time when I come back. If you haven't tried this app, you're really missing out.
Basil
Android user
This app has made me feel so much more confident in my exam prep, not only through boosting my own self confidence through the features that allow you to connect with others and feel less alone, but also through the way the app itself is centred around making you feel better. It is easy to navigate, fun to use, and helpful to anyone struggling in absolutely any way.
David K
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The app's just great! All I have to do is enter the topic in the search bar and I get the response real fast. I don't have to watch 10 YouTube videos to understand something, so I'm saving my time. Highly recommended!
Sudenaz Ocak
Android user
In school I was really bad at maths but thanks to the app, I am doing better now. I am so grateful that you made the app.
Greenlight Bonnie
Android user
very reliable app to help and grow your ideas of Maths, English and other related topics in your works. please use this app if your struggling in areas, this app is key for that. wish I'd of done a review before. and it's also free so don't worry about that.
Rohan U
Android user
I know a lot of apps use fake accounts to boost their reviews but this app deserves it all. Originally I was getting 4 in my English exams and this time I got a grade 7. I didn’t even know about this app three days until the exam and it has helped A LOT. Please actually trust me and use it as I’m sure you too will see developments.
Xander S
iOS user
THE QUIZES AND FLASHCARDS ARE SO USEFUL AND I LOVE THE SCHOOLGPT. IT ALSO IS LITREALLY LIKE CHATGPT BUT SMARTER!! HELPED ME WITH MY MASCARA PROBLEMS TOO!! AS WELL AS MY REAL SUBJECTS ! DUHHH 😍😁😲🤑💗✨🎀😮
Elisha
iOS user
This apps acc the goat. I find revision so boring but this app makes it so easy to organize it all and then you can ask the freeeee ai to test yourself so good and you can easily upload your own stuff. highly recommend as someone taking mocks now
Paul T
iOS user