Sediment

geology · erosion · rocks

Broken down by nature. Rocks get worn away by weathering and erosion, breaking into smaller and smaller pieces like sand, silt, and clay.

Travels with water. Rivers carry sediment downstream in the flowing water, and when the water slows down at the ocean, the sediment sinks and settles on the sea bed.

Moved by ice and wind. Glaciers push sediment across landscapes, and strong winds can carry fine dust and sand across deserts and oceans.

Becomes new rock. When sediment gets buried deep underground and pressed by the weight of layers above, it slowly turns into hard rock through a process called lithification.

Found everywhere. You can see sediment building up on river banks, forming beaches, and creating new land at river deltas where rivers meet the ocean.