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Rivers

The document defines key terms related to rivers and the hydrologic cycle including evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, runoff, infiltration and more. It discusses the stores and flows of water within the hydrologic cycle and that only a small percentage of water on Earth is freshwater found in rivers, soil, lakes and the atmosphere.

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Luke .J. Wutete
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13 views9 pages

Rivers

The document defines key terms related to rivers and the hydrologic cycle including evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, runoff, infiltration and more. It discusses the stores and flows of water within the hydrologic cycle and that only a small percentage of water on Earth is freshwater found in rivers, soil, lakes and the atmosphere.

Uploaded by

Luke .J. Wutete
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Rivers

Definition of terms
• Hydrologic cycle- the continuous recycling of water between
atmosphere and land surface.
• Evaporation- water is heated by sun and rises up the sky as
water vapour.
• Transpiration- the loss of moisture from plants and leaves to
the atmosphere.
• Condensation- the cooling down of water vapour into water
droplets to form clouds.
• Precipitation- all form of water released from
clouds/atmosphere such as rain, snow, hail.
• Surface runoff- the flow of water across the surface of the land.
• Interception- natural or manmade objects get into the way(fall)
of rain.(trees, buildings)
• Confluence- the point at which two rivers merge.
• Load- the materials carried by the river.
• Drainage basin- the area coming under the
influence of a particular river.
• Water shed- the boundary between two drainage
basins.
• Catchment area- the area from which the river
collects its water.
• Estuary- the partially submerged delta at the
mouth.
• Flood Hydrograph - the graph which shows how a
storm affects a stream or river over a short period
of time.
• Percolation/Infiltration- the soaring down of water into the
soil.
• Ground water flow- the movement of water through the rocks
and soil.
• Through flow- the flow of water towards sea or lake through
the soil.
• Water table- the level of saturated ground/ground water in the
soil.
• River source- the starting point of a river.
• Tributaries- the streams which contribute water to the main
channel.
• Distributaries- the streams which distribute water from the
main channel
• River mouth/Estuary- the end point of a river.
• Delta- the triangular shaped deposition at the mouth of a river.
Water on Earth
• Only 2.5% of the water on Earth is freshwater
• 68.7% of freshwater is stored in glaciers and
ice sheets and 30% is groundwater
• The remaining 1.3% of freshwater is in rivers,
soil moisture, lakes and the atmosphere
• All water is part of the hydrological cycle
Hydrological cycle
• The hydrological cycle is a closed system
• Water is constantly recycled through the
system
• Within the hydrological cycle, there
are stores and transfers (flows)
• Evaporation - water is stored in the seas as a liquid. High temperature
and warm winds change the liquid water into gas (water vapour)
which rises into the atmosphere.
• Evapotranspiration - vegetation not only intercepts rainfall but also
take it up through roots from the soil. This water is eventually
returned to the atmosphere by transpiration from leaves. Surface
water is also evaporated from leaves.
• Condensation – as water vapour is blown towards mountain by the
prevailing wind it is forced to rise, cools and condensed back into
water droplets. These form clouds and relief (orographic) rainfall or
snow.
• Interceptions – some rainfall is intercepted by plants and trees before
reaching the ground. Some falls on the land and infiltrates the ground
or flows on the surface as small fast- flowing streams.
• Overland flow – upland streams flow downhill and join at confluences
to form slower – moving wider, deeper rivers which eventually
discharge the water into lakes or the sea.

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