The Drainage Basin Flashcards
What is meant by the drainage basin
area of land where all surface water from precipitation converges to a single point at a lower point.
What is watershed?
the area of highland forming the edge of a river basin
What is the source?
where the river begins
What is the mouth?
where a river meets the sea
What is a confluence?
the point where two rivers meet
What is a tributary?
a small river or stream that joins a larger river
What is a channel?
this is where the river flows
What is the drainage basin?
this is the area of land by a river and its tributaries
What are the inputs in the hydrological cycle?
Energy from the sun for evapouration
Precipitation
What are the outputs of the hydrological cycle?
Evapotranspiration
Runoff to the sea
Water percolating deep into the underground stores, effectively leaving the system
What are the stores of water?
On the surface - glaciers, lakes, rivers, puddles
Vegetation stores water by interception and plants
The soil can hold water
Groundwater is stored in permeable rocks
What are transfers and flows?
Moves water through the system and enable inputs of water to be processed from one store to another.
Transfers include throughfall, stemflow, infiltration, throughflow and groundwater flow.
Throughfall
describes the process of precipitation passing through the plant canopy
Stemflow
is the process that directs precipitation down plant branches and stems
Infiltration
where the water filters through the ground and the tiny pores in the soil
