Assignment task:
Weathering is the breakdown of rocks and minerals by physical, chemical, and biological processes. Understanding the ways in which rocks break down, and the rates at which this break down occurs, is the focus of study for many earth scientists. Weathering is important for identifying rock strength, determining landslide potential, or assessing the structural integrity of building stones. Rock mechanics and the susceptibility of rocks to weathering also influence the development of many landforms and landscapes. Finally, many earth scientists are working to constrain rates of weathering to understand climate change as the chemical breakdown of silicate rocks is one of the main processes by which CO2 is removed from the atmosphere and stored in the lithosphere. In textbooks, weathering is typically presented as being relatively straightforward with several different types of weathering associated with various rocks and minerals. In most cases, however, weathering is not so simple. In this lab you will observe the relative rates of weathering for different lithologies and try to determine the processes by which these rocks are breaking down