There are three sections in a river they are called: The upper Course, The Middle Course and The Lower Course.

A river transports material through: Deposition occurs when the river starts losing energy. Heavy particles are deposited first. The light material is transported. Eventually most of the lighter material is then deposited, although sometimes not until the river reaches the mouth. The three sections of a river There are three sections in a river they are called: The upper Course, The Middle Course and The Lower Course. The upper Course, is the steepest part of land in the river. It is usually small, but flows very fast. The energy levels are high and the river cuts away at its bed. As it does it quickly deepens its valley through down cutting. This creates a steep sided V- shaped valley. Downward erosion is the dominant process. In The Middle Course, the river starts to flow slowly because it starts to transport lots of sediment, as rivers look muddy. As a river moves down its valley, a number of changes occur. The river gets wider, as more tributaries join together. * The valley sides become less steep, giving the shape of a open V. * The river begins to erode sideways, into its banks. This opens out the valley floor and a flood plain that starts to develop. * Erosion and deposition occur. * The edges of the floodplain are marked by bluffs. The lower Course, is when the valleys V shape is so wide that he valley sides have been

  • Word count: 679
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Geography
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Describe the Course of a River

The Course of a River A river is fresh water flowing across the surface of the land, usually to the sea. It flows in a channel. The bottom of a river is called the bed, and the sides of a river are called banks. There are three parts of a river, the upper course (The start of the river), the middle course (The middle part of the river) and the lower course (The end of the river). All rivers start at the source. This is usually up in the hilly ground. This means that there is a steep gradient which causes fast flow. As the water is flowing faster, more erosion occurs. Erosion is when the water, as it is flowing, it wears away the land. This is why you find V-shaped valleys. Transportation is another process that happens due to the water flowing fast. Transportation is when the river carries along with its current, materials such as mud and pebbles which have been eroded. At this point pot holes can be formed. A pot hole is formed by pebbles swirling around on the river bed. This action erodes the river bed therefore forming a hole. Over time, these pot holes can join with other pot holes till eventually the whole river bed is deepened. In the upper course, waterfalls can be formed. They are formed when the river flows over the hard rock. Where the water flows over soft rock, it erodes the softer rock away. Over time, it gets more and more eroded due to the water flowing on

  • Word count: 596
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
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River course project.

Map of Area List of Apparatus * Chain * Clinometer * Net * Bucket * Tape Measure * Measuring Poles * Flow Metre * Ruler (1 metre) * Dog Biscuits * Stop Watch Aims * To measure the length of the wetted perimeter * To measure of the river * To measure the depth of the river at five different intervals * To study the velocity of the river at five different intervals * To measure the gradient of the river * To study the level of pollution in the river Methods Used Wetted Perimeter Measuring the length of the river 4 sites along Afon Conwy 10m sections. A chain (red) and a tape measure were used to work out the wetted perimeter. The chain from the water surface on one bank was taken to the opposite bank and the length of the chain was measured. Measuring the Wetted Perimeter (above) Width Measuring the Width (below) A tape was used to measure the water surface on one bank to the water surface on the other bank. (Hypothesis 1) Depth The width of the channel was taken and divided into six. The depth was measured at five different intervals using a 1 metre ruler. (Hypothesis 3) Velocity Measuring the Velocity (below) The width of the channel was taken and divided into six. The flow meter was two-thirds of the way down and timed 30 seconds to see how many revolutions the impeller turned in order to work out the velocity of the river using a flow

  • Word count: 874
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Geography
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To what extent can fluvial landfoms be classified s upper,lower or middle course

To what extent can fluvial landforms be classified as belonging to the upper, middle or lower course of a river? A logical, clear way to classify fluvial landforms is according to the one location where they can be found, but some of these belong to more than one river section. As the river advances, its characteristics and surroundings change and therefore, fluvial landforms are common at only specific river sections. However, some landforms can be found in both the middle and lower courses of a river, product of similar river features found in the different stages of its profile and therefore can be classified in more than one category. The upper course holds unique characteristics which affect the type of fluvial landforms that take place exclusively in this portion of the river profile, showing the cross section of a river from its source to its mouth. The source or beginning of a river is usually a melting glacier or a lake in a mountainous area. It is because of this that the slope or gradient of a river at this stage is rather steep, making water flow downwards at an angle and erosion to be mostly vertical. Different types of weathering, like frost wedging, break apart the mountain rocks and tumble into the river bedload, so this will be composed of large angular boulders. This part of the river has a low discharge, which is the amount of water flowing in the cross

  • Word count: 937
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
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The river Gwaun: Investigating how the course of the river changes from the source to the mouth.

Introduction I am investigating how the course of the river changes from the source to the mouth. I will study the River Gwaun at 4 sites, starting at Gellifawr (near the source), then going to Pontfaen, then Llanychaer, then finally ending at Lower Fishguard, near the mouth where the river meets the Irish Sea. I went to do my fieldwork on the 20th May 2002 with my Geography class and another from my year. I was in a group of 5, with Richard Gledhíll, Chrís Strzeleckí, Jason Inglesant. Ashley Stone and James O'Shea. We worked in a group because it is the easiest and probably the only way to collect all the data we need at each site. We collected data from each of the 4 sites. Site 1 - Gellifawr This is close to the source and is situated in the Preseli Hills. The relief is steep and the banks are V-shaped, typical of parts of the river in the Upper Profile. The water and the banks are very muddy. The river was apparently flowing slowly, there was a lot of large, angular bed load and there was a few small waterfalls. There was evidence of turbulence at some parts of the river. Site 2 - Pontfaen This site was on a floodplain next to a farm. There was evidence of an ox-bow lake nearby, which shows the river had been meandering. The river is flowing quite fast and the bed load is mostly small sub-angular/rounded pebbles. The river is quite wide and had much clearer

  • Word count: 4757
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Geography
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Explain where and why depositional landforms occur along the course of a river.

Explain where and why depositional landforms occur along the course of a river. Rivers have three courses. The course is the journey the river makes to reach the sea. Rivers never have a straight course from source to mouth. Their course is always irregular. Along this course depositional landforms can occur. Landforms can be formed from the deposition of weathered and eroded surface materials. On occasion, these deposits can be compressed, altered by pressure, heat and chemical processes to become sedimentary rocks. This includes landforms with some of the following geomorphic features: beaches, deltas, floodplains, and glacial moraines. The upper course is found in the mountains and hills where the river rises from its source and often waterfalls and rapids are also found in this course. The river is usually fast flowing in the upper course; also there are lots of stones and boulders for the water to flow over. Furthermore, the river starts as a stream in the upper course and flows through valleys. The middle course, however, is where the river starts to become wider and deeper. The land, which the river flows over, is becoming flatter and this is where the river starts to meander or bend in the middle course. The lower course is where the river becomes its widest and deepest. This course is found closest to the sea where the river has its mouth. The flat area of land by

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  • Word count: 861
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Geography
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River study of the River Bride.

Mouth of the River Bride 1937 - the river finds its way through the shingle on the beach River Survey of the River Bride Introduction On Friday 9th of May we ventured to Osmington Bay in Dorset. We went to Dorset in order to conduct a river study of the River Bride. The undertaking of a river study was for Geography Coursework that would contribute to our final GCSE mark. We spent the first day studying the River Bride, specifically 10 sites from the source to the mouth representing changes in the river. The River Bride was chosen because of its array of river features. These include: River cliffs Meanders Slip Off Slopes Vegetation Springs Tributary Old River Channel It was easy to see why the River Bride was chosen as it embraced all those features listed above situated in the same place. It gave us a chance to test a vast array of hypothesis in the same day. SOUTH-WEST ENGLAND DORSET COASTLINE COASTLINE RIVER BRIDE AREA Background Information The majority of the catchment area for the River Bride is the Bride Valley. The valley runs east-west and as a result the river runs parallel to the coast, generally an unexpected phenomenon. The hills creating the valley reach over 180m in height. They are made of Bridport sandstones and limestones lying over Gault and Wealden Clay, creating a set of springs. The river itself falls 100m over the 12.75km

  • Word count: 2394
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Geography
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Balian River

GEOGRAPHY COURSEWORK LOCATION : BALIAN RIVER DATE OF STUDY : 8TH of SEPTEMBER & 7TH of NOVEMBER BY BELLA Contents . Purpose of investigation. 2. Hypothesis. 3. How rivers work. 4. Location of area of study 5. Methods and techniques 6. Results 7. Analysis 8. Conclusion PURPOSE OF THE INVESTIGATION To investigate the effect of the river processes which are evident in the Balian River Catchment. And, to investigate the effects of climate on landform development. Hypothesis In Balian river, there might be abrasion, solution, and transportation. There will be the upper course, middle course, and lower course. The river starts from the source which is on the upper course, and flows way down through the middle course and the lower course, and ends up on the mouth below the lower course. Rivers always flow from highland area to the lowland area. At the source, trees and other plants might be found besides the source. The source must be at the mountains, so the weather is a bit cool, and fresh. And the speed of the water flow in the source might not fast, or maybe calm. In the upper course of the river, there might be some steep slopes and the river channel is quite narrow. Because of the erosion, on the upper course we might find some steep V-shaped valleys, rapids, and even waterfalls. In the middle course, erosion has made the river channel wider. Because in

  • Word count: 1508
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
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'How does the risk of flooding vary along the course of the River Eea?'

The River Eea, Cartmel Peninsular, Cumbria, Northwest England 'How does the risk of flooding vary along the course of the River Eea?' In order to understand what can contribute to a river flooding or what can be done about it I used the River Eea, located south of Lake Windermere in the Lake District, Northwest England (see fig. 1). I used four sites along the course of the River Eea, starting at Ayside Tarn near the source of the river Eea and finishing near the mouth at Cark Farm. At each site I took a number of various readings to help me with my studies, finding out how flooding varies along the course of the River Eea. These readings included data such as the velocity of the river, the width, and the depth at set intervals across the width. I also took readings such as the management strategies in use, the gradient of the river, and the land use along the course of the river. I collected this data because these are the main factors that contribute to flooding. I will give these factors a score on a scale of 1 to 5 at each site so that I can compare the risk of flooding at each of the four locations. 5 will mean that the location is very likely to flood and 1 will mean the site is very unlikely to flood. A total score out of 25 can then be given to each site. The wetted area is the amount of water in the channel so this will get a high score if it is a high

  • Word count: 2745
  • Level: AS and A Level
  • Subject: Geography
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River Rother

INTRODUCTION We are visiting four different locations, on the 18th September 2009, along The River Rother. It is hoped that these locations will demonstrate the three main courses of a river; Upper Course, Middle Course and Lower course. The four locations that we will be visiting and carrying out our tests are: . Marley Lane, for the upper course (the source) 2. Sedlescombe, for the middle course 3. Bodiam, for the lower middle course 4. Rye Harbour, for the lower course (mouth) The purpose of the study is to find out if our hypothesis proven correct or not, 'The River Rother includes all the physical features and land use of a typical river.' Collecting data from each of the location hopefully will prove our hypothesis correct. The information that we need to collect from the three locations are; the width, depth and speed. To obtain these results we will be using a meter ruler, tape measure, clinometer and a dog biscuit. For some of the results that we are unable to get we will use a secondary source and we will compare our results to the results from text the books. The four locations that have been chosen are ideal for our study because they are close to the school, they show all the three stages of the rivers course and we are able to visit all the locations and get out tests done in one day. The River Rother, is 35 miles long, is a river flowing through the

  • Word count: 4057
  • Level: GCSE
  • Subject: Geography
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