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The zone of a glacier in which losses through various processes, such as calving, deflation, melting, etc., exceed any addition through snowfall or accumulation of rime ice. Compare...

The amount of water vapour in air, determined as the mass of vapour per unit mass of air, and normally given in grams per cubic metre. See also humidity; specific humidity.

Relatively small topographic features of a dominantly flat, deep-ocean floor, commonly 50–250 m in height and a few kilometres in width. They are most typical of the Pacific Ocean floor at...

The lower depths of the ocean (below approximately 2000 metres), where there is effectively no light penetration. Abyssal organisms are adapted for living under high pressures in cold dark...

1 The growth of land by the offshore deposition of sediment, forming spits and tombolos. Accretion is most active in estuaries, particularly within the tropics. See Robin et...

The zone of a glacier in which the amount of snow and ice that is deposited exceeds that lost by deflation, evaporation, melting, or other means. Compare ablation zone.

A geological fault that is still active rather than dormant, meaning that significant displacement or movement has occurred on it within about the last 10 000 years.

The subsurface zone between the ground surface and the water table, where the pores in soil and rock contain both air and water. Also known as unsaturated zone, vadose zone, or zone of...

Any physical, chemical, or biological entity that can affect (benefit or injure) an organism, people, or the environment. Also known as an environmental agent or stressor.

Describing an agricultural system which combines horticulture and animals.