What are the different types of mass movement?
Mass movement (or mass wasting) is the removal of a large amount of material in one go. The fact that mass movement removes a large amount of broken down material in one go is what sets it apart from erosion, which only moves small amounts at a time. There are six different mass movements explained in this Online Tutorial. What does mass movement need to work? Mass movement (or mass wasting) needs the following factors to be able to function: • Water (for lubrication) • Loose soil / rock (by weathering) • A slope (the steeper it is the faster the movement will be) • Hard and soft rocks in alternate beds • No vegetation to hold the soil / rock together. Slumping Soil Creep Soil creep is an almost imperceptible downward movement of individual particles down a slope over a long period of time. It varies from other types of mass movement as it is not a sudden movement, like a landslide, but it happens on a massive scale – hence the ‘mass’ part. Soil particles swell when it rains, lifting t
