Hydrosphere

Hydrologic Cycle
Click the card to flip 👆
1 / 18
Terms in this set (18)
Hydrologic Cycle
the continuous circulation of water among the hydrosphere, biosphere, and geosphere
Four Paths of Precipitation
- Runoff
- Infiltration
- Evapotranspiration
- Biospheric Incorporation
Runoff
- Surface water flowing into the sea via streams & rivers
- Temporary stops in lakes / wetlands but eventually returns to atmosphere or ocean
Infiltration
- Water seeps into ground contributing to groundwater reservoirs
- aquifer
- Groundwater flows through the pore spaces in sediment & bedrock (slower than surface flow)
Evapotranspiration
- Direct evaporation from land surface
- Transpiration from plants
- Leaf stomata regulate gas exchange and water
Biospheric Incorporation
very small amount incorporated into the biosphere in the form of plant & animal tissue
Stream
a moving body of water confined in a channel & flowing downslope
Sinuosity
river's tendency to move back & forth across floodplain over time (S-shaped pattern) Sinuosity = Channel Length
Valley Length
3 Controls For Stream Flow & Velocity
- Gradient
- Discharge
- Channel Characteristics
Gradient
This is the steepness, or vertical drop of a stream over a specific distance.
Driving force
Measured as difference in height over a specified distance
Discharge- Volume of water flowing downstream over a specified period of time - Measured in units of cubic meters per second (m^3/sec) or cubit ft per second (cfs)Channel Characteristicsfeatures describing the shape and roughness of a stream channel - page 215 textDistribution of the Hydrosphere- Salt Water 97.5% - Fresh Water 2.5% - In Glaciers 1.717% - In Ground 0.750% - On Earth's Surface 0.008% - Frozen 0.025% This is breakdown of 1.3 billion km^3 of water on Earth's surfaceDevelopment of River System1. Sheetwash runs down steep slopes & erodes weathered or soft materials 2. Creates rills (small channels) 3. Rills deepen, coalesce into tiny tributaries 4. Tributaries coalesce into rivers larger channelsThree Main Loads Present In a StreamBed Load (pebbles and sand which move along the stream bed without being permanently suspended in the flowing water) Suspended Load (silts and clays in suspension) Dissolved Load (material in solution)Bed Load demonstrates what movementsliding rolling saltationFour Sediment Grain TypesGravel >2mm COARSE Sand 1/16-2mm MEDIUM Silt 1/256-1/16 mm FINE Clay < 1/256 mm VERY FINEFour Main Channel PatternsStraight Meandering Braided Anastomosing