mudcrack
Sign in to saveupright=1.25|thumb|Fresh mudcracks on the shore of The Wash, England Mudcracks (also known as mud cracks, desiccation cracks or cracked mud) are sedimentary structures formed as muddy sediment dries and contracts. Crack formation also occurs in clay-bearing soils as a result of a reduction in water content.
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Article
12 sectionsContents
- Formation of mudcrack
- Morphology and classification of mudcrack
- Completeness of mudcrack
- Plan-view geometry
- Mud curls
- Environments and substrates
- In technology
- Preservation of mudcrack
- Gallery
- See also
- References
- External links
upright=1.25|thumb|Fresh mudcracks on the shore of The Wash, England Mudcracks (also known as mud cracks, desiccation cracks or cracked mud) are sedimentary structures formed as muddy sediment dries and contracts. Crack formation also occurs in clay-bearing soils as a result of a reduction in water content.
== Formation of mudcrack== thumb|upright|Top layer shrinks and curls up due to the strain thumb|upright|Crack pattern in clay exposed to the air Naturally forming mudcracks start as wet, muddy sediment dries up and contracts. A strain is developed because the top layer shrinks while the material below stays the same size. When this strain becomes large enough, channel cracks form in the dried-up surface to relieve the strain. Individual cracks spread and join up, forming a polygonal, interconnected network of forms called "tesselations." If the strain continues to build, the polygons start to curl upwards. This characteristic can be used in geology to understand the original orientation of a rock. Cracks may later be filled with sediment and form casts over the base.