Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
Dip The angle between an inclined surface (bedding plane, fracture plane) and the horizontal
Dip direction The angle between the geographical north and the sense of dipping of an inclined surface
(bedding plane, fracture plane)
Discharge The volume of water flow through a given cross-section
Displacement A change in position of material point
Doline A funnel-shaped hollow in carbonate rocks. Synonym: Sinkhole
Elastic limit The point on a stress/strain curve at which the elastic behavior of the material transforms to
inelastic behavior
Exposed karst Karstic rocks outcropping at the ground surface
Fault A fracture separating two bodies of rock, which have moved relatively to one another, or continue to
move
Fault zone A zone with number of parallel or sub-parallel faults
Fissure Commonly used term in karst studies, is an open joint or crack, capable to provide a route for water
movement and consequent rock dissolution
Fracture A more general term for all kinds of fracturing caused by mechanical stress in the rocks
Fracture pattern A special arrangement of a group of fracture surfaces
Fracturing A formation of breaks in a rock
Gallery A large, nearly horizontal passage in cave
Heterogeneity A variation of material properties from point to point
Homogeneity Material properties are identical everywhere
Isotropy Material properties are the same in all directions
Joint A fracture surface in the rock along which no displacement has occurred
Joint system See Conjugated joints
Karren The complex of superficial solution forms on compact carbonate rock. They vary in depth from a few
millimeters to more than meter and are separated by ridges
Karst Internationally used term for specific morphological and hydrological features in soluble (mostly
carbonate) rocks
Karst water A water dissolving the rocks during the passage through them and discharged from karst springs
Karstification A process (chemical and mechanical) of karst formation by water solution and infiltration
Laterite A tropical ferruginous clay soil
Lithology A physical characteristic and structure of rocks (composition, grain size, texture, degree of
lithification)
Lithostratigraphy A system of formal naming and description on a local scale of defined recognizable units
of rock successions
Normal fault A fault in which the lower block has moved downward relative to the upper block
Outcrop An open exposure of rocks, normally covered by younger sediments
