Weathering forces?

Question

What are some of nature's weathering forces, and how do rocks get smaller in the outdoors?

Answer 1

Weathering forces include: water, wind, other rocs moving, blowing sand, ice, glaciers as in moving ice, moving water, there is chemical weathering and acid rain.

Answer 2

WEATHERING
Encompasses the disintegration and decomposition of rocks and minerals at and near the Earth's surface. This occurs in situ, and does not directly involve the removal processes .

Weathering ... is the adjustment of the chemical, mineralogical and physical properties of rocks in response to environmental conditions prevailing at the Earth's surface. In other words, when rocks find themselves out of their 'comfort zones' they adjust to the new conditions they find themselves in. A rock formed deep within the crust, where temperatures and pressures are extremely high, finds itself under very different conditions at the earth's surface, where temperatures and pressures are relatively low.

Agents of weathering
(1)Gases in the atmosphere : most important are O2, C02 - dissolve in water to produce acids (natural and pollution) - chemical weathering
(2)plant roots :take up space and release organic chemicals - chemical and physical weathering
(3)temperature changes :heating-cooling, freezing-thawing - chemical and physical weathering
(4)water :perhaps most important agent to both chemical and physical changes in nature.


Physical Weathering

Physical disintegration of rock material without any change in its chemical composition; basically, big rocks are changed into many smaller rocks.

Physical weathering ...
*produces a substantial increase in surface area thereby facilitating chemical weathering!
*is the most common form of weathering in arid regions - because chemical weathering is minimal in these areas

The products of physical weathering are:
*large joint blocks - many metres in dimensions; and
*fragments of rock crystals


Chemical Weathering

The breaking down of rocks by chemical alteration of constituent minerals. During chemical weathering the internal structure of minerals is destroyed.

Chemical weathering .is the predominant weathering process in warm and wet environments.Dissolution ,hydrlysis and oxidation play important role in chemical weathering.

The products of chemical weathering are:
*new minerals

Rocks get smaller in outdoors because of these factors working on them like water ,temerature changes .Its weathering and ersosion which pave way for rocks to get smaller and fragmented.!!!!

Answer 3

wind and water. rocks get smaller by being acted upon by wind and water. Its called erosion.