Hydrosphere and Water Flashcards
River Basin
Any area of land where precipitation collects and drains off into a common outlet (river, bay, or other bodies of water).
Aquifer
A body of permeable rock which can contain or transmit surface water (groundwater).
Watershed
An area of land that separates waters flowing to different rivers or basins. Water drains into a stream system, also called a drainage basin.
Percentages of:
- Earth’s water being salt
- Earth’s water being fresh water
- 97% of Earth’s water is in oceans; salt water
- 3% of Earth’s water is freshwater
Surface Runoff
Flow of water that occurs when excess storm-water, meltwater, or other sources flows over the Earth’s surface
Factors leading to increased runoff:
- Little or no vegetation (topsoil is easily eroded so water funs off easier).
- Heavy rain (falls too quickly to soak into the ground)
- Soil with lots of clay (impermeable)
- Steep slope
- High groundwater levels
Stream Systems:
- A stream is runoff water that begins to flow more permanently in a channel
- A large stream is called a river.
- The smaller streams that feed into rivers are called tributaries.
Groundwater
All the water held underground in the soil or in pores and crevices in rock.
- Unsaturated zone
- Saturated zone
- Surface water
- Water table
(https: //images.app.goo.gl/fpz2DsjCWm4qoQvt9)
Divide:
A high land area which separates one watershed from another.
Continental Divide:
- A drainage divide on a continent
- Drainage basins on one side of the divide feed into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea.
Headwaters:
- Beginning of a stream
- Found in mountains
- Water is cold, oxygenated, clear
- V shaped channels
- Steep sides
Streamflow
The ability of a stream to erode and transport materials depends largely on its velocity.
NC’s Continental Divide:
- Eastern Continental Divide is in the Blue Ridge Mountains
- Rivers west flow into Gulf of Mexico
- East flow into the Atlantic.
Stream Channel
The course the water in a stream follows (shape, size, roughness)
Floodplain
A broad, flat, fertile area next to a stream that floods periodically.
Meander
A bend or curve in a stream channel.
Discharge
Discharge is the volume of water flowing past a certain point in a given unit of time.
Gradient
The slope or steepness of a stream channel.
Erosion and Deposition:
- Water flows fastest on the outside of a meander and erodes a cut bank.
- Water flows slowest on the inside of a meander and deposits a sandbar
- An oxbow lake is a blocked-off meander
Mouth and Delta
- Mouth is the end of the stream
- Usually locates at the ocean or another large body of water
- Streams lose ability to carry sediment
- A delta is a triangular deposit which forms at the mouth of a river
- Pollution comes from upstream.
Stream Load
All materials carried by a stream and its water
- Can be solutions, suspensions, or bed loads (sediments are too large to be carried in suspension)
Carrying capacity
The ability to transport material (determined by its velocity and size of the streams).
National Weather Service
Agency which monitors weather, as well as potential flood conditions.
Cut-bank and Point Bar
A cut-bank is a steep, bare slope formed by stream erosion (Outside of a meander)
A point bar is outside of the continuous erosion (Inside of a meander).
(https://images.app.goo.gl/KJQq2929PMrMLuLx8)
Eutrophication
Excess nutrients cause the overgrowth of algae which die and decay and use up oxygen.
(Process can be sped up by over-fertilizing land near a waterway)
Point vs. Nonpoint Pollution:
Point-source pollution is pollution from one direct source.
Nonpoint pollution is from multiple sources.
Groundwater Storage (Porosity):
- Groundwater is stored in the pore spaces of rocks and sediments.
- The percentage of pore space in a material is called “porosity.”
- The types of soil that have the highest porosity are “well sorted.”
Zone of Saturation:
- The Zone of Saturation is the depth below Earth’s surface at which groundwater completely fills all the pores.
- The upper boundary of this zone is the water table
Aquiclude
Impermeable layer above or below an aquifer
Springs
Groundwater discharges at Earth’s surface.
Springs are formed when temperatures and pressure come in contact with water
Percentages of:
- Where most freshwater is found
- How much of freshwater is groundwater
- How much is surface water
- Most (~69) of freshwater is found in glacier and ice caps.
- Some (30%) of freshwater is groundwater
- A little (0.3%) of freshwater water is surface water (streams, lakes, and rivers).
Hot Springs
Springs which have temperatures higher than the human body.
They are so hot because the subsurface is still hot from relatively recent igneous activity.
Geysers
An explosive springs that erupts at regular intervals.
Well
A hole dug to reach a reservoir of groundwater.
Cone of depression (Well)
Water level due to pumping.
Produced by the over-pumping of wells.
Drawdown (Well)
The difference between the original water table level and that of a pumped well (The action of pumping water)
Recharge (Well)
When water from rain or runoff is added to an aquifer.
Hard Water
Water that contains high concentrations of calcium, magnesium, or iron.
- Common in limestone areas
- Causes deposits of calcium bicarbonate and can clog water pipes.
Wetlands
Land that is soaked with water.
- Bogs
- Marshes
- Swamps
Bogs:
- Water in a bog comes from precipitation
- The soil in a bog is acidic because of the decaying moss.
- This slows bacterial growth which prevents nutrient recycling.
Marshes:
Freshwater marshes often form at the mouth of a river.
Marsh grasses have shallow roots that anchor silt and mud deposits in a delta (Builds land!).
Swamps
A low-lying area near a stream
Swamps may develop from marshes that have filled in and support the growth of shrubs and trees.
Caves
A natural underground opening with a connection to Earth’s surface.
- Formed by Carbonic Acid (H2O + CO2 in the soil).
- The rock that is eroded by this acid is a limestone.
Karst Topography
Limestone regions that have sinkholes, sinks, and sinking streams.
- Sinkholes are depressions caused by the collapse of a cave.
Infiltration
When some precipitation does not runoff, and instead sinks to become groundwater.
