Landslide


The rapid downward sliding of a mass of earth and rock. Landslides usually move over a confined area. Many kinds of events can trigger a landslide, such as the oversteepening of slopes by erosion associated with rivers, glaciers, or ocean waves; heavy snowmelt which saturates soil and rock; or earthquakes that lead to the failure of weak slopes.

Reference

landslide. (n.d.). The American Heritage® Science Dictionary. Retrieved March 14, 2011, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/landslide