Rock Breakers! Why Does Weather Break Rock?

What Crafty Clover says in this video

Intro

Hi! I'm Crafty Clover! Let's discover something amazing. Why does weather break rock?

The Big Idea

Rock is super hard. But weather can still break it apart! One of the strongest tricks is ice. Water gets into a tiny crack, freezes, and pushes the crack wider. Water, ice, and heat take rock apart! Let's watch ice do its work.

Step 1

Step one: water seeps into a crack. Every rock has tiny cracks. When it rains, or when snow melts, water trickles in. It fills the crack all the way.

Step 2

Step two: the water freezes. On a freezing night, the water turns into ice. Ice takes up more space than liquid water, about 9 percent more. So the ice shoves the crack wider.

Step 3

Step three: freeze and thaw, again and again. When the sun comes up, the ice melts, and more water seeps deeper. The next freeze pushes again. After many seasons, the rock splits apart.

A Closer Look

Let's zoom in on a cracked rock. The crack starts thin and full of water. When it freezes, the ice pushes on both walls. Bit by bit, the two halves are forced apart.

Quick Facts

Quick facts! Water expands by about 9 percent when it freezes. That's why water pipes can burst in winter. Broken bits of rock fall and pile up at the bottom of cliffs. Those piles are called scree. Freeze-thaw works best on high mountains and cold places, where it freezes and thaws almost every day. Grown-up note: watch out for loose rocks below cliffs, and never climb on unstable slopes.

Think Like a Scientist

Now, think like a scientist! Try this with a grown-up. Fill a small plastic container to the top with water, and put a lid on it. Freeze it overnight, and look at what happens. What does the ice do to the lid?

Outro

So weather breaks rock when freezing water pushes cracks wider. Amazing, right? Crafty Clover can be found on Amazon Books, Google Bookstore, and Apple Books. Available for purchase or download! Bye for now!