Frost heave

…The latter, also known as freeze disturbance, is a process in which the volume of unconsolidated sediments containing water changes due to freezing and thawing, causing displacement and deformation of materials near the ground surface. These include the following phenomena: frost heave, in which water is drawn up from the unfrozen lower part by capillary action as freezing progresses, and ice is precipitated and pushed up the ground; frost heave, in which gravel underground freezes and is pulled up to the frost-heaving soil; selection of gravel that is drawn up to the ground surface as a result; shrinkage of the ground surface and the formation of freeze cracks; freezing pressure on unfrozen soil left in the frozen soil; and agglomeration and intrusion of materials caused by unequal changes in volume due to the uneven distribution of soil grain size and water. On slopes, this is supplemented by solifluction, a phenomenon in which the entire surface layer of soil saturated with water flows slowly downhill, using water as a lubricant. Soils with strong capillary forces, such as loess and volcanic ash, are susceptible to this process because they draw up large amounts of water when frozen. …

*Some of the terminology explanations that mention "frost heave" are listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

…後者は凍結擾乱（じようらん）作用ともいい，水を含む未固結堆積物の凍結融解による体積変化によって，地表付近の物質の変位･変形をもたらす作用で，以下の諸現象が含まれる。それは，凍結進行時に下部の未凍結部分から毛管現象で水を吸い上げ，氷を析出して地面を押し上げる凍上frost heave，地中の礫が凍上する土に凍着して引き上げられる凍着凍上，それにより地表へ引き上げられる礫の淘汰，地表の収縮および凍結割れ目の形成，凍土中に取り残された未凍結土にかかる凍結圧や，土の粒度組成と水の不均等分布による体積の不等変化が引き起こす物質の集塊変化や貫入などで，斜面ではそれにソリフラクションすなわち水に飽和された表層土全体が，水を潤滑材としてゆるやかに斜面を流れ下る現象が加わる。レスや火山灰など毛管力の強い土は，凍結時に大量の水を吸い上げるので，この作用を受けやすい。…

※「frost heave」について言及している用語解説の一部を掲載しています。

出典｜株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典 第２版について | 情報