Running Water and Ground Water
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What does the hydrologic cycle illustrate?
The circulation of Earth’s water supply from oceans and other bodies of water to the atmosphere and back to land and oceans
What are the processes involved in the hydrologic cycle?
Evaporation, precipitation, runoff, transpiration, infiltration
What is evaporation?
The process by which water changes from liquid to vapor and enters the atmosphere
What is precipitation?
Water that falls from the atmosphere to Earth’s surface in any form (rain, sleet snow, hail)
What is infiltration?
The process by which water soaks into the ground
What is runoff?
Water that flows over the land surface into streams and other bodies of water
What is transpiration?
The release of water vapor into the atmosphere by plants
What is stream flow?
The flow of water in a channel
What factors affect stream flow velocity?
Gradient, shape, size, roughness and discharge
What is discharge?
The amount of water flowing in a stream
What is a stream profile?
A cross-sectional view of a stream from its head (source) to its mouth
What factors increase downstream?
Velocity, discharge and channel size
What factors decrease downstream?
Gradient and channel roughness
What is base level?
The lowest point to which a stream can erode or cut its channel
What is the ultimate base level?
Sea level
What is a temporary or local base level?
A base level such as a lake or distributary that temporarily stops erosion
What is erosion by streams?
The incorporation and transportation of material by streams
What are the three types of stream load?
Dissolved load, suspended load and bed load
What is stream competence?
The maximum particle size a stream can carry
What determines stream competence?
The speed (velocity) of the stream
What is stream capacity?
The maximum load a stream can carry
What determines stream capacity?
The discharge of the stream
What causes deposition?
A decrease in stream speed
What are deltas?
Deposits that form in oceans or lakes at the mouth of a stream