What is a cliff?
Q: What is a cliff?
A: A cliff is a vertical or very steep natural wall of rock.
Q: Where are cliffs commonly found?
A: Cliffs are common on coasts, in mountainous areas, escarpments and along rivers.
Q: What types of rocks form cliffs?
A: Sedimentary rocks such as sandstone, limestone, chalk, and dolomite most likely form cliffs. Igneous rocks such as granite and basalt also often form cliffs.
Q: What is an escarpment?
A: An escarpment (or scarp) is a type of cliff, formed by the movement of a geologic fault or a landslide.
Q: How do cliffs create geographical features?
A: Cliffs are known for forming major geographical features such as waterfalls.
Q: What is the tallest cliff in the solar system?
A: The tallest cliff in the solar system may be Verona Rupes, an approximately 20 km (12 mile) high cliff on Miranda, a moon of the planet Uranus.
Q: How does the Ordnance Survey distinguish between cliffs and outcrops?
A: The Ordnance Survey distinguishes between cliffs (continuous line along the top edge with projections down the face) and outcrops (continuous lines along lower edge).
