Chapter 8 Flashcards
When a stream’s ability to carry water is overwhelmed by the sheer volume of water flowing off the landscape and overflows its banks
Flood
-Continual transfer of water between subsystems
-Ultimately driven by solar energy (electromagnetic radiation) that strikes earth’s surface
Hydrologic cycle
__________ is when liquid water is warmed by the sunlight and sends water vapor back into the atmosphere.
Evaporation
The process when plants send water vapor back into the atmosphere
Transpiration
When vapor in the atmosphere eventually cools and condenses into tiny water droplets which fall back to the earth surface in the form of rain, sleet, snow or hail
Precipitation
-Term used to describe the volume of water moving through a channel over a given time interval
-commonly measured in units such as cubic feet per second (ft3/s)
Stream discharge
-Process where precipitation that reaches the land surface moves downslope (under the force of gravity) in thin sheets
-Ex: How water flows across across a sloped parking lot
Overland flow
During this event, water will eventually move into a low area of the terrain and begin flowing discretely as a stream
Overland flow
What hydrologists often refer to water flowing through channels as?
Runoff
Where does most stream discharge make its way to?
Ocean. Water flows from areas of higher elevation to lower elevation.
Describe the hydrologic cycle.
When soils accumulate enough water, gravity is able to begin pulling it from the pore spaces. This allows infiltrating water to reach the water table and enter the saturated zone, at which point the water is called ___________________.
Groundwater
