rivers and inland waters
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Created by:
willhughes on October 31, 2011
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48 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 stream | a small or large flow of water in natural channels |
| river | a large natural stream of water (larger than a creek) |
| brook | small stream |
| creek | small stream |
| Gradiant | a loss in elevation |
| head water | The waters that are the source of a river |
| downcutting | erosion of a valley by a stream |
| floodplain | The area subject to flooding during a given number of years according to historical trends. |
| stream discharge | the volume of water passing a point along the river over a period of time |
| meandering stream | a stream with a channel that curves or loops back and forth on a wide floodplain |
| meander bend | a curve in the river or stream |
| meander scars | the layers exposed on the inner side of the bend |
| oxbow lake | a crescent-shaped lake (often temporary) that is formed when a meander of a river is cut off from the main channel |
| auqifier | underground layer of permeable rock or sediment that contains water |
| tributary system | a group of streams that contribute water to a larger stream |
| trunk stream | major river; the main river in a river system |
| distributary system | an outflowing branch of a river such as what occurs characteristically on a delta |
| drainage basin | where all the rain water eventualy ends up usually in the ocean |
| drainage divide | boundary seperating basins, such as a ridge |
| water cycle | the continuous process by which water moves from Earth's surface to the atmosphere and back |
| closed system | A system that allows the exchange of energy, but not matter, between the system and its surroundings. |
| evaporation | the process of extracting moisture |
| precipitation | the falling to earth of any form of water (rain or snow or hail or sleet or mist) |
| surface runoff | water that flows over land until it reaches lakes, rivers, or other areas |
| ground water | underground water that is held in the soil and in pervious rocks |
| transpiration | the emission of water vapor from the leaves of plants |
| reservoir | lake used to store water for community use |
| flux | become liquid or fluid when heated |
| zone of aeration | The upper zone which usually isn't completely filled with water, but with rocks and soil too. ( Is about Ground water) |
| zone of saturation | The lower zone where water accumilates between small rock particles. |
| infiltration | the slow passage of a liquid through a filtering medium |
| capillarity | the attraction between molecules that results in the rise of the surface of a liquid when in contact with a solid |
| water table | underground surface below which the ground is wholly saturated with water |
| auquifer | A underground geological formation that stores water |
| confined aquifer | A groundwater storage area trapped between two impermeable layers of rock. |
| artesian well | a well drilled through impermeable strata into strata that receive water from a higher altitude so there is pressure to force the water to flow upward |
| water cycle | the continuous movement of water between Earth's surface and the air, changing from liquid to gas to liquid |
| porosity | the percentage of the total volume of a rock or sediment that consists of open spaces |
| permability | The ability of rock or sediment to let sediment to let fluids pass through its open spaces or pores. |
| aquifer | an underground layer of permeable rock or sediment that contains water, underground bed or layer yielding ground water for wells and springs |
| saturated zone | A layer of permeable rock or soil in which the cracks & pores are COMPLETELY FILLED with water |
| water table | underground surface below which the ground is wholly saturated with water |
| evapotransporation | The total loss of water from the surface including plants and trees |
| unconfined aquifer | aquifer in which there is no impermeable layer restricting the upper surface of the zone of saturation |
| recharge | NEW WATER that enters an aquifer from the surface |
| aquiclude | a layer of impermeable rock adjacent to one that is permeable |
| aquiduct | human made channels that carried water from distant mountain ranges into rome or other cities |
| desalination | process of removing salt from salt water |
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