2. Hydrologic Cycle Flashcards
What are the major sources of water?
Rainwater
Surface Water
Groundwater
Approximately ____ of all water on the Earth is the ____.
97%; oceans
The movement of water on the earth’s surface and through the atmosphere
Hydrologic Cycle
Used to model the storage and movement of water between the biosphere, atmosphere, lithosphere and hydrosphere
Hydrologic Cycle
is stored in the following reservoirs: atmosphere, oceans, lakes, glaciers, soils, snowfields, and groundwater
water
Major components of hydrologic cycle (PIGETS)
Precipitation
Infiltration
Evaporation
Transpiration
Surface runoff
Groundwater
Part of atmospheric moisture that falls back on the Earth surface
precipitation
Primary input into the hydrologic cycle
precipitation
is the chief source of moisture for precipitation
evaporation from ocean surfaces
Condensation or sublimation of atmospheric moisture.
Brought about by one or more of the following reasons:
o Adiabatic cooling
o Mixing of air masses of varying temperatures
o Radiation cooling
o Contact cooling
o Tiny liquid water droplets, 0.1-0.55 mm diameter
o Falls <1mm/hr
drizzle or mist
Liquid water drops >0.5mm diameter
rain
refers to amount of liquid precipitation
rainfall
o Ice coating, generally clear and smooth, formed on exposed surfaces by the freezing or super-cooled water deposited by rain or drizzled
o Specific gravity 0.8-0.9
glaze
o White, opaque deposit of ice granules separated by trapped air and formed by rapid freezing of super-cooled water drops
o Specific gravity 0.2-0.3
rime
Composed of ice crystals, chiefly in complex, branched hexagonal form, and often agglomerated into snowflakes
o Average SG 0.1
snow
o Balls of ice produced in convective clouds
o Hailstones - spheroidal, conical, or irregular in shape
o SG 0.8
hail
o Transparent, globular, solid grains of ice formed by the freezing of raindrops or refreezing of melted ice crystals as it falls in a layer of subfreezing air near the surface
sleet
Occurs when radiant energy from the sun heat water, causing water molecules to rise into the atmosphere as vapor
evaporation
Transfer of water from bodies of surface water into the atmosphere
evaporation
is water evaporating from the ground and transpiration by plants
evapotranspiration
___ of atmospheric water comes from evaporation, while ____ is from transpiration
90%; 10%
Portion of the precipitation that reaches the earth’s surfaces seeps into the ground
infiltration
___ will depend upon soil or rock permeability
infiltration rate
Infiltrated water may reach another compartment known as groundwater or ____
aquifer
Water that doesn’t infiltrated the soil flows on the surface as ____
runoff
Not all precipitated water returns to the sea as runoff; much of it _____ before reaching the ocean or reaching an aquifer
evaporates
incorporates movement of water within the earth, wither within the recharge zone or aquifers
subsurface flow
this water may return to the surface or eventually seep into the ocean after infiltrating
subsurface water
