Nivation is the umbrella term given to periglacial processes caused by snowfall.
- Snow can build up and have an erosional effect, creating depressions in the sides of mountains
- Meltwater can penetrate cracks made by snow and freeze-thaw weathering can then occur
- When the snow melts, the meltwater can remove weathered rocks
- Snow accumulates in cracks and erodes a deep hollow through erosional slip which can develop into a corrie
Loess is the name given to fine-grained material found in the outwash plain of a glaciated region, blown by strong winds and deposited somewhere geographically different. Extensive loess deposits can be found in northern China, the Great Plains of North America, central Europe and parts of Russia and Kazakhstan.
