How do weathering and erosion differ?

How do weathering and erosion differ?

• A. Weathering involves moving rock; erosion breaks it down in place.
• B. Weathering and erosion are the same process.
• C. Weathering breaks down rocks in place; erosion moves rock and sediment to new locations.
• D. Weathering requires water; erosion does not.

Answer: (C)

Weathering is the process that breaks rocks into smaller pieces in place, while erosion is the movement of those pieces to new locations. Weathering can be physical, like freeze-thaw cracking, or chemical, like minerals dissolving, and it doesn’t relocate material. Erosion takes the already-weathered material and transports it—by water, wind, ice, or gravity—to new areas, where it can be deposited or further worn down. These two work together to shape landscapes: weathering provides the sediment, erosion moves it, and deposition finally settles it somewhere else.

Weathering is the process that breaks rocks into smaller pieces in place, while erosion is the movement of those pieces to new locations. Weathering can be physical, like freeze-thaw cracking, or chemical, like minerals dissolving, and it doesn’t relocate material. Erosion takes the already-weathered material and transports it—by water, wind, ice, or gravity—to new areas, where it can be deposited or further worn down. These two work together to shape landscapes: weathering provides the sediment, erosion moves it, and deposition finally settles it somewhere else.