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Mystery #2Tier 2waterfalls and erosion

Why does a waterfall very slowly creep upstream, year after year?

Some famous waterfalls have moved. Not overnight, but over hundreds and thousands of years the edge has crept slowly upstream, leaving a long gorge trailing behind it. The water keeps pouring over the same drop, yet the drop itself is on the move. Why does a waterfall very slowly creep upstream, year after year?

Thornton Force waterfall pouring over a hard rock ledge, with softer layered rock cut back underneath it
Photo: David Quinn · CC BY-SA 2.0 · via Wikimedia Commons

Your guess

The waterfall's edge keeps shifting upstream, little by little. What do you think is wearing it back?

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