How water's properties change rock and land

Grade 9 Science Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Card (USGS)

   Ice is about 9% less dense than liquid water. The same mass of water takes about 10% more space as ice, since 1 ÷ 0.91 is about 1.10.

2. 1.

   A crack holds 100 mL of water. It freezes. Using the card, how much space does Ari's ice need?

   • About 91 mL, found as 100 × 0.91
   • About 100 mL, the same space as the water
   • About 190 mL, found as 100 × 1.90
   • About 110 mL, found as 100 × 1.10
3. 2.

   Water in a rock crack freezes and the rock splits wider. Bo asks why. Which explanation fits USGS?

   • The water shrinks as it freezes and pulls the crack apart
   • The water expands as it freezes and pushes the crack wider
   • The cold makes the rock expand until it splits by itself
   • The ice dissolves the rock walls as it forms

4. Daily lows and highs in °C (model data)

   Site	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3
   Site A low	-12	-10	-11
   Site A high	-3	-2	-4
   Site B low	-2	-3	-1
   Site B high	4	3	5

   Note: Each day, water in a crack freezes when the temperature is below 0 and thaws when it is above 0.

5. 3.

   Esme compares two sites over three days. Which site gets more frost wedging, where water repeatedly freezes and thaws in cracks?

   • Site A, since its ice stays frozen and builds up
   • Site A, since it gets much colder than Site B
   • Neither, since both sites drop below 0 °C
   • Site B, since it crosses 0 °C every day
6. 4.

   Rain takes up carbon dioxide from the air and the soil. Limestone is made of calcite. Rain picks up carbon dioxide from air and soil. What forms, and what does it do to limestone, by Jun's reading?

   • Carbon dioxide gas forms and hardens the limestone
   • Weak carbonic acid forms and slowly dissolves calcite
   • Salty water forms and wears limestone as it dries
   • Strong sulfuric acid forms and melts limestone at once
7. 5.

   Solution caves form along joints, faults and layers in rock that dissolves. Water moves through cracks. NPS says solution caves form along joints, faults and layers. Why does Kira find caves following cracks?

   • Cracks hold ice that melts the limestone away
   • Cracks hold calcite that grows into stalactites
   • Water moves through cracks and dissolves limestone along them
   • Cracks hold strong acid that burns tunnels in one day
8. 6.

   Drips that lose carbon dioxide deposit calcite on the cave ceiling and floor. Water drips from a cave ceiling and loses carbon dioxide, leaving calcite behind. What does Luz see build up?

   • Stalactites grow as the ceiling dissolves away
   • Stalactites hang down as calcite is deposited
   • The cave room gets wider as the calcite dissolves
   • A sinkhole opens above as the calcite is deposited

9. Use this

   Table, Stream speeds for particles (model data, rounded), with columns Particle, Speed to pick it up (cm/s), Speed below which it settles (cm/s): Clay, 100, 1; Sand, 20, 10; Gravel, 60, 40. Note: Numbers are made up to show the pattern of the Hjulstrom diagram; real values differ.

10. 7.

    A stream moves at 80 cm/s. Using the table, which particles can Milo's stream pick up?

    • Clay, gravel and sand, since 80 cm/s is fast
    • Sand and gravel, but not clay
    • Clay and sand, since small particles are easiest to lift
    • Gravel alone, since it is the heaviest

11. Jar test (model data)

    Water, gravel, sand and clay were shaken together. Gravel settled in 10 seconds, sand in 5 minutes, and clay still clouded the water after 2 days.

12. 8.

    In a jar test (model data), gravel settled in 10 seconds, sand in 5 minutes, and clay left the water cloudy for 2 days. What does Ren infer?

    • The particles settle together, since gravity is the same
    • Larger particles settle faster; clay stays suspended the longest
    • Clay settles first, since it is the smallest particle
    • Sand settles first, since it is the middle size
13. 9.

    a rock cracks after 200 freeze-thaw cycles. Site B has 120 cycles a year. A rock cracks after 200 freeze-thaw cycles. Site B has 120 cycles a year. About how many years does Tala expect?

    • About 0.6 years, found as 120 ÷ 200
    • About 80 years, found as 200 − 120
    • About 1.7 years, found as 200 ÷ 120
    • About 24,000 years, found as 200 × 120
14. 10.

    Choices describe results in a stream table (model data). Zee wants a result that supports the claim that slowing water drops sediment. Which result fits?

    • Sand moved in a narrow channel, then stayed there as it narrowed
    • Gravel moved farther in slow water than in fast water
    • Sand moved in a narrow channel, then settled where it widened
    • Sand stayed on the bed in fast water, then moved when it slowed