The process by which rocks and minerals are broken down into smaller pieces through exposure to wind, water, temperature changes, and chemical reactions. This natural process shapes landscapes over time by wearing away mountains, creating soil, and forming valleys.
From Old English 'weder' meaning weather or storm, combined with the suffix '-ing' indicating a process. The geological meaning developed in the 1600s as scientists began understanding how atmospheric conditions gradually break down rock formations.
Weathering is literally the Earth sculpting itself! Every grain of sand on a beach was once part of a mighty mountain that weathering slowly carved away over millions of years. The Grand Canyon exists because weathering and erosion worked together like nature's chisel and hammer to reveal two billion years of Earth's history in its colorful rock layers.
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