Earth's Water Flashcards
Runoff
Water that flows over earth’s surface
Watershed
An area of land that drains runoff into a particular stream, lake, ocean, or other body of water
Water table
Upper limit of saturated zone
Ground water
Water that lies below ground
Wetlands
Area of land that is covered with a shallow layer of water during some or all of the year
Aquifer
An area of permeable sediment or rock that holds significant amounts of water
What are three types of wetlands?
Marshes, swamps, and bogs
What is the difference between saturated ground and unsaturated ground? How is that related to the water table?
The saturated zone is totally filled with water, while the unsaturated zone contains air and water that can not be saturated.
Describe how the unique property of water having a lower density when frozen protects life on earth.
In the winter when the top part of lakes freeze (at 4 degrees celcius), the fish are safe because the ice stays on top and insulates the animals from the cold air. When the ice freezes it expands.
Explain how upwellings and currents affect our environment and climate.
Upwelling generates some of the world’s most fertile ecosystems.
Ocean currents act as conveyor belts of warm and cold water, sending heat toward the polar regions and helping tropical areas cool off.
Explain how wetlands are important for our environment. (you may need to use your book)
Wetlands function as natural sponges that trap and slowly release surface water, rain, snowmelt, groundwater and flood waters.
Condensation
Gas changing to liquid
Evaporation
Liquid changing to gas at surface
Polarity
Condition which opposite ends of a molecule have slightly opposite charges
Cohesion
The attraction among molecules that are alike
Adhesion
The attraction among molecules that are not alike
Water can exist in 3 seperate states. What are they?
Solid, liquid, and gas
A majority of freshwater is where?
In glaciers and groundwater
What is the chemical formula for water?
H20 (the 2 is a little beneath the H and the 0 but I don’t know how to type that)
Salinity
A measure of the mass of dissolved solids in a mass of water
Gyre
Circular system of currents (Northern Hemisphere- clockwise Southern Hemisphere- counter clockwise)
Coriolis effect
Movement of wind and weather to the right or left due to earth’s rotation
Upwelling
Vertical movement of water toward the ocean’s surface
Tides
Periodic rise and fall of the ocean’s surface
The 3 zones - surface, middle, and deep - and where bioluminescence, photosynthesis, and blue/green light correspond to which zone?
Surface zone - photosynthesis
Middle zone - blue/green light
Deep zone - bioluminescence
What is the Great Ocean Conveyor Belt?
Global belt of surface currents and density currents distributes thermal energy on earth
