section 1+2 Flashcards
describe water distribution
oceans (saltwater) - 97%
frozen freshwater (glaciers, ice, snow) - 2%
groundwater - 0.9%
surface freshwater (lakes, rivers, pond) - 0.1%
WHY ARE OCEANS SO SALTY?
Oceans and seas are fed by river water, and rain water. When river water flows it picks up small deposits of minerals, these minerals along with the river water are eventually washed out to sea/ocean.
How come river water is not salty? But it makes the ocean salty?
Over millions of years the rivers have been depositing small amounts of mineral salts into the ocean. Over time that small amount collects and increases the salt concentration of the oceans.
POTABLE WATER meaning
- safe to drink
SALINITY meaning
Many different solids are dissolved in freshwater and saltwater -
name water testing criteria (7)
Colour & cloudiness (TURBIDITY) Dissolved salts and minerals (HARDNESS) Toxic substances Bacteria pH (acidity) Dissolved oxygen Even taste
Distillation meaning
- heat is used to evaporate water that leaves salt behind
Reverse osmosis meaning
forces salt water through a filter/membrane that only water passes through
describe waves (5)
- Waves are changes in patterns that move along the surface of water
- Waves do NOT move water - energy is just transferred through the water as a wave
- Caused by the wind
- Waves do most damage on shores
- Waves can also deposit materials at the shore
describe tides (3)
- Change in water level on shores
- Caused by gravitational pulls from the moon and sun
- Centripetal force causes water to bulge - higher water levels at the equator
describe river formation (5)
- Most streams originate in higher elevations
- In lower areas, smaller streams begin to combine to form rivers, increase in volume
- Over time rivers slowly begin to twist and turn, this erodes the nearby river banks forming valleys (river is meandering)
- As river waters begin to slow the farther it travels from its source it deposits rocks and minerals into the riverbed
- River eventually forms collects into a lake, or flows into the ocean
why is it so important river / stream charteristics?
- helps us understand types of organisms living there and the impact humans can have on these waters
- Engineers use stream characteristics for building bridges, dams
describe the different zones in rivers
Erosion zone - fast, large sediments enter water
Transfer Zone - slowing down, sediment moving along river
Depositional Zone - very slow, sediment deposited at bottom of river
describe 5 stream Characteristics
Speed of flow - fast, moderate, slow, crawling
Quantity of water - vast (Amazon River), large (North Sask. River), moderate (Bow River), small (Elbow River), trickle (mountain brook)
Stream shape - straight, sinuous, meandering
Stream slope (affects speed of water flow - steep, moderate, gentle)
Stream width (how wide is the river) wide, intermediate, narrow
Stream bank (tall steep cliffs - not much erosion, valleys eroded over time, deltas form via deposition)
Stream sediment size (how large are rocks being pushed by the river)
Stream sediment amount - turbidity (more sediment = murky)
large amounts (Mekong Delta), moderate (North Sask. River), small amounts (Bow River)
delta definition
zones of deposit