Answer:
Withering is a process in which a rock gets broken down into small and large fragments which are displace other location by the action of wind, water and ice. There are three types of withering: mechanical ,chemical and biological. Mechanical withering is a process which brings changes into physical structure of rocks like large rocks are converted into small rock. Chemical withering is a process which brings changes in the chemical composition of rock. This withering process can change minerals content in the rock. Biological withering is a process in which living beings uses rock for their survival like plants, animals and microbes causes disintegration of rock.
Highly withered and unwithered rock can be distinguished by following characteristics:
1. Physical structure: There will be no change in the structure of unwithered rock but structure of highly withered rock will change after the withering process.
2. Chemical composition: The withering process will remove surface and internal minerals present in rock. In unwithered rock the surface and internal mineral composition will remain unchanged but in highly withered rock the surface and internal minerals present in rock will be removed, which change the overall chemical composition of the rock.
