physicalweathering the mechanical breakdown of rocks and minerals chemicalweathering the breakdown of rocks and minerals by chemical reactions, the dissolving of chemical elements from rocks or both acidprecipitation precipitation high in sulfuric acid an
Across
- 2. the proportion of soil bases to soil acids, expressed as a percentage
- 4. frequently the top layer of a soil, a zone of organic material and materials that have been mixed together
- 5. mining techniques used when the desired recourse is more than 100 m below the surface of the Earth
- 6. an element with properties that allow it to conduct electricity and heat energy, and to perform other important functions
- 7. a mining technique in which the entire top of a mountain is removed with explosives
- 11. the least weathered soil horizon, which always occurs beneath the B horizon and is similar to the parent material
- 12. the process of looking for minerals metals and precious stones in river sediments
- 14. precipitation high in sulfuric acid and nitric acid from reactions between water vapor and sulfur and nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere
- 18. a zone of leaching, or eluviation, found in some acidic soils under the O horizon or, less often, the A horizon
- 21. the ability of a particular soil to absorb and release cations
- 22. a horizontal layer in a soil defined by distinctive physical features such as texture and color
- 23. the removal of strips of soil and rock to expose ore
- 24. a mining technique that creates a large visible pit or hole in the ground
- 25. the mechanical breakdown of rocks and minerals
Down
- 1. the most fully decomposed organic matter in the lowest section of the O horizon
- 3. the loss of some or all of a soils ability to support plant growth
- 8. the average concentration of an element in Earth's crust
- 9. the physical removal of rock fragments from a landscape or ecosystem
- 10. the breakdown of rocks and minerals by chemical reactions, the dissolving of chemical elements from rocks or both
- 13. unwanted waste material created during mining including mineral and other residues that are left behind after the desired metal or ore is removed
- 15. in recourse management, the known quantity of a resource that can be economically recovered
- 16. the underlying rock material from which the inorganic components of a soil are derived
- 17. the organic horizon at the surface of many soils, composed of organic detritus in various stages of decomposition
- 19. a concentrated accumulation of minerals from which economically valuable materials can be extracted
- 20. a soil horizon composed primarily of mineral material with very little organic matter