Q 01/05

What primarily forms a canyon?

A) A river eroding rock over geologic time

B) Glaciers depositing moraine ridges

C) Volcanic eruptions splitting the crust

D) Wind alone scouring the ground

Answer · why

A) A river eroding rock over geologic time

Rivers cut down toward the level of the water body they drain into, especially where hard and soft rock layers alternate.

Q 02/05

From which language does the word 'canyon' come?

A) Portuguese

B) Spanish

C) Navajo

D) French

Answer · why

B) Spanish

Gorge and ravine, by contrast, are French in origin and more common in Europe.

Q 03/05

Why do canyons favour dry regions over wet ones?

A) There are far more earthquakes in deserts

B) Wind-blown sand grinds rock more effectively

C) Rivers flow much faster in deserts

D) Physical weathering there acts in a localised way

Answer · why

D) Physical weathering there acts in a localised way

Frost wedging, where water freezes in cracks, also helps break off chunks of canyon wall.

Q 04/05

What defines a box canyon?

A) Steep walls on three sides and one way in

B) It ends abruptly in a lake

C) It was carved by a glacier, not a river

D) A perfectly square cross-section

Answer · why

A) Steep walls on three sides and one way in

Ranchers in the American West fenced their mouths and used them as corrals.

Q 05/05

What is a river called that keeps its path through a canyon as the land uplifts around it?

A) Captured

B) Entrenched

C) Meandering

D) Braided

Answer · why

B) Entrenched

The Colorado and the Snake are the classic American examples.