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Geolens

Glossary

417 words used in the labs.

Find a term from the labs, understand the process behind it, and see how it appears in the landscape. Each entry connects an explanation with a real observation and a model you can explore.

Term

Slip-off slope

Also written: Point bar

The gently sloping inner bank of a river bend, where sediment tends to accumulate as a point bar. It contrasts with the steeper outer cut bank. Both develop as the bend migrates and its flow redistributes sediment.

What to look for

Ucayali River, Peru, photographed from the ISS. Meander migration leaves cut-offs and abandoned channels across the floodplain.

Related labs

River deposition →
The muddy Ucayali River winds through forest in Peru, with abandoned bends beside the active channel.
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Explore further with USGS water glossary · USGS volcano glossary · NPS glacial geology · NASA Earth facts. Photograph acknowledgements are collected on the Image credits page.