The water cycle 5.1-5.3 Flashcards
Systems thinking is…
theory about nature of complex systems in nature
- group of components parts that work together through a web of interactions
What type of system is the global water cycle
Closed system
What type of system is the global water cycle and why
Closed system because only energy(sun) can pass into and exit the system. Water stays in the system
What is a store
where water is held
What is a flow
A process that moves water from one store to another
What is a flux
a flow (only if we know the quantity
What are the largest stores in the global water cycle
- ocean
- cyrosphere
- groundwater
What is an aquifer?
underground store of water
What is infiltration
water going into the ground
What is percolation
water being pulled down by gravity (further into the ground)
What are proportional flow lines
Bigger the value, bigger the arrow
Residency times are
The average amount of time a water molecule will stay in a store
The longest residency times are found…
Ice cap, glaciers and permafrost
The shortest residency times are found…
Biospheric water
What are fossil aquifers
Aquifers that are ‘sealed’ and are not being replenished
What are cryospheric losses
Increased melting of a glacial ice takes water out the cryosphere, increasing ocean stores
A drainage basin is…
an area of land that is being drained by a river system
What type of system is the drainage basin
Open system
A watershead is….
the boundary of the drainage basin
The Largest drainage basin is
amazon (7.05million km sqaured)
The shortest drainage basin is
Tamborasi Indonesia (20 metres)
What factors affect the inputs, stores, flows and outputs?
Climates, Soils, Relief, Vegetation, Geology, Humans
The main input into a drainage basin is
precipitation
3 main causes of precipitation
Orographical rainfall
Convectional rainfall
Frontal rainfall
