Rivers Flashcards
abstraction
Removal of water from rivers, lakes or groundwater for human use.
base flow
That part of a river’s discharge fed by groundwater
channel
The part of a valley floor occupied by the flowing water of a stream or river.
discharge
The quantity of water that passes a given point on a stream or riverbank within a given period of time.
drainage basin
The area drained by a river and its tributaries, bounded by a watershed.
erosion
The wearing down of the land by water, ice, wind and gravity.
flood plain
That part of a valley floor over which a river spreads during seasonal floods.
hydrograph
A graph on which variations in a river’s discharge are plotted against time.
hydrological cycle
The unending movement of water between land, sea and atmosphere.
impermeable Rocks
Rocks that do not allow water to pass through them.
interlocking spurs
A series of ridges projecting out on alternate sides of a valley and around which a river winds its course
levee
A bank of sediment formed along the edge of a river channel deposited by floodwater.
mass-movement
The movement of weathered rock downslope without the direct action of running water
meander
A pronounced bend in a river
precipitation
The deposition of moisture on the Earth’s surface, in the form of dew, frost, rain, hail, sleet or snow.
stores
Places within a system where materials or energy are held for a time.
streamflow
The flow of surface water in a well-defined channel.
watershed
The dividing line between one drainage basin and another.
weathering
The chemical alteration and physical breakdown of rock in situ
