Could someone explain how unloading works, and why a rock would expand when a material above or alongside it is removed?

-- Brent Mathis (mathis@oswego.edu), April 03, 2001

Answers

Unloading is what happens to a rock after it has spent a long period of time under substantial pressure from the rock above and then the rock above is either eroded away or physically removed, this causes the rock to expand or "unload" which frequently causes it to crack. For a more complete answer, consult question #13 on the Weathering online quiz.

Dan

-- Dan Lake (danls1@aol.com), April 03, 2001.

Unloading is when you have a rock with rocks around it and you move the rocks surrounding it. This causes the rock in the middle to expand and break due to pressure. The pieces of the rock that break off are called joints.

-- Shannon Davis (september_29_81@yahoo.com), April 04, 2001.