CSS Geography Geomorphology Syllabus

Geomorphology syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Geomorphology in CSS Geography, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Earth's Structure and Crustal Evolution

   4 topics

   • Origin and evolution of the earth's crust
   • Physical conditions of the earth's interior
   • Endogenic and exogenic forces
   • Factors controlling landform development
2. 2

   Plate Tectonics and Crustal Dynamics

   5 topics

   • Continental drift
   • Sea-floor spreading
   • Plate tectonics theory
   • Isostasy
   • Geosynclines
3. 3

   Tectonic Landforms and Hazards

   3 topics

   • Mountain building (orogeny)
   • Volcanicity
   • Earthquakes
4. 4

   Geomorphic Cycles and Landforms

   7 topics

   • Concepts of geomorphic cycles
   • Fluvial landforms
   • Arid and aeolian landforms
   • Glacial landforms
   • Coastal landforms
   • Karst landforms
   • Groundwater

Geomorphology flashcards for CSS Geography

22 of 55 cards from the Geomorphology deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What is geomorphology?

   The scientific study of landforms and the processes (endogenic and exogenic) that shape the Earth's surface, including their origin, evolution, and classification.

2. According to the Nebular Hypothesis (Laplace), how did the Earth originate?

   From a hot, rotating gaseous nebula that cooled and contracted; rings of matter detached from the spinning mass and condensed into planets, including Earth.

3. What are the broad stages in the evolution of the Earth's crust from its molten origin?

   A molten globe cooled and contracted, the lighter materials (silica-rich) rose to form the solid outer crust, water vapour condensed to form oceans, and an atmosphere developed around it.

4. What are the three main concentric layers of the Earth's interior?

   The crust (outermost), the mantle (intermediate), and the core (innermost), separated by discontinuities.

5. What is the difference between SIAL and SIMA?

   SIAL is the lighter, silica- and aluminium-rich upper continental crust (density ~2.7); SIMA is the denser, silica- and magnesium-rich lower oceanic crust (density ~3.0).

6. What are the approximate thicknesses of continental versus oceanic crust?

   Continental crust averages about 30-70 km thick (thickest under mountains); oceanic crust is thin, about 5-10 km.

7. What is the Mohorovicic Discontinuity (Moho)?

   The boundary separating the crust from the mantle, marked by a sudden increase in seismic wave velocity, discovered by Andrija Mohorovicic.

8. What is the asthenosphere?

   The weak, partially molten, plastic zone of the upper mantle (below the lithosphere) on which the rigid tectonic plates move; the source region of magma.

9. What is the difference between the lithosphere and the asthenosphere?

   The lithosphere is the rigid outer shell (crust + uppermost mantle) that forms tectonic plates; the asthenosphere is the underlying soft, plastic mantle layer that allows plate movement.

10. What are the main divisions of the Earth's core and their states?

    The outer core is liquid (molten iron and nickel) and the inner core is solid, despite higher temperatures, due to immense pressure.

11. What material is the Earth's core (NIFE) mainly composed of?

    Nickel (NI) and iron (FE), which are heavy elements giving the core a very high density (~13).

12. What generates the Earth's magnetic field?

    Convection currents and movement of molten iron-nickel in the liquid outer core (the geodynamo effect).

13. How do temperature and pressure change with depth in the Earth's interior?

    Both temperature and pressure increase with depth; the geothermal gradient is roughly 1 degree C per 32 metres in the upper crust, decreasing deeper.

14. What are endogenic (endogenetic) forces?

    Internal forces originating beneath the Earth's surface, driven by the planet's internal heat, that build up the relief (e.g., tectonic movements, volcanism, earthquakes).

15. What are exogenic (exogenetic) forces?

    External forces operating on the Earth's surface, driven by solar energy and gravity, that wear down the relief (e.g., weathering, erosion by rivers, glaciers, wind, waves).

16. Why are endogenic forces called 'constructive' and exogenic forces 'destructive'?

    Endogenic forces build up landforms (mountains, plateaus, volcanoes) raising the land, while exogenic forces denude and level the surface by erosion and deposition (gradation).

17. What is gradation in geomorphology?

    The overall leveling of the land surface by exogenic agents, comprising degradation (erosion/lowering) and aggradation (deposition/filling).

18. What is the difference between diastrophism and the two types of endogenic movements?

    Diastrophism is the deformation of the crust; it includes epeirogenic (vertical, broad continent-building) movements and orogenic (horizontal, mountain-building) movements.

19. What is the difference between epeirogenic and orogenic movements?

    Epeirogenic movements are slow vertical (radial) movements affecting large continental areas (uplift/subsidence); orogenic movements are horizontal (tangential) compressive movements that fold and build mountains.

20. What are the main factors controlling landform development?

    Geological structure, rock type/lithology, climate, the geomorphic processes acting, time/stage of development, and tectonic activity.

21. How does climate control landform development?

    Climate determines which weathering and erosional processes dominate (e.g., glacial in cold regions, aeolian in deserts, fluvial in humid regions), producing characteristic landforms.

22. Who proposed the Continental Drift Theory and in what year?

    Alfred Wegener, a German meteorologist, in 1912 (elaborated 1915).

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