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35 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Closed system
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There is input, transfer, and output of energy but not of matter (or mass)
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Open system
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Most environmental systems are open and there are inputs and outputs of both energy and matter
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Why is the hydrological cycle a closed system?
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Water does not enter or exit the cycle. The water used is always the same, therefore there is no transfer of mass/matter
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Drainage basin - inputs
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Precipitation
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Drainage basin - storage
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Interception
Surface storage Vegetatin Storage Soil water storage Ground water storage Channel storage |
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Drainage basin - transfers
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Throughfall
Stemflow Infiltration Surface runoff (Overland flow) Throughflow Percolation Ground-water flow (baseflow) Channel flow |
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Drainage basin - outputs
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Transpiration
Evaporation River runoff |
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Explain what happens in the hydrological cycle
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1. Sun heats ocean
2. Ocean water evaporates and rises into the air 3. Water vapour cools and condenses to become water droplets, which form clouds 4. If enough water condenses, the drops become heavy enough to fall to the ground 5. Some rain collect on ground wells, the rest flows through rivers and back to the ocean |
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What is a drainage basin?
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An area of land drained by a river and its tributaries
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What is a tributary?
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A smaller river that runs or flows into the main body (trunk) of the river system
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How do you recognise the drianage baisns boundaries?
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The boundary is marked by a ridge of high land beyond where any precipitation will drain into neighbouring basins
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What is the drainage basins, boundary called?
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Watershed
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What are the 7 factors that affect infiltration?
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1. Intensity of precipitation
2. Duration of rainfall 3. Soil type 4. Amount of vegetation cover 5. Depth of water table 6. Slope of land 7. Human activity |
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Interception
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The process by which precipitation is trapped on the surface of vegetation
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Surface storage
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Water sitting upon the Earths surface, not being transferred
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Soil moisture/groundwater
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The store of water held beneath the water table
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Infiltration
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The process by which water on the Earths surface moves into the soil store
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Percolation
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Water in the soil store flows vertically through soil and rocks. Down into deep groundwater stores
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Surface runoff (overland flow)
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Water flows horizontally across the surface of the land
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Through-flow
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The movement of water horizontally throught the soil and subsoil, from soil storage to channel storage
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Groundwater flow
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The store of water held beneath the water table
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What is precipitation affected by?
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Amount of rainfall.
The shorter the duration, the higher the intensity if the rainfall |
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What is EVT affected by?
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Temperature
Wind speed Humidity Hours of sunshine Transpiration depends on the time of year, type and amount of vegetation, availabilty of moisture and the length of the growing season. Potential EVT differs from actual EVT |
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What is interception affected by?
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A woodland area would allow for greater interception, where as a grassed/farmed area would allow less interception
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What is surface runoff affected by?
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The amount of rainfall and how saturated the soil is
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What is infiltration affected by?
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The infiltration capacity (or maximum rate at which infiltration occurs) depends on:
1. Antecedant precipitation (moisture already in the soil) and 2. Porosity |
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What is percolation affected by ?
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The more compact the soil/bedrock, the lower the percolation
Percolation affects groundwater storage |
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What is groundwater flow used for?
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Rivers draw on this in dry periods
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What is channel flow affected by?
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This is affected if water is sotred in dams etc, or used for other purposes such as irrigation, etc
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Hydrology
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The study of water in a natural environement
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Hydrological cycle
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This refers to the constant recycling of water between the oceans, atmosphere and land
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Inputs
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Energy or matter that enters into a system
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Outputs
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Energy or matter that leaves a system
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Stores
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Natural reservoirs of water in the environment, such as rivers, lakes, soil vegetation, the atmosphere and the water table
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Flows
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Paths that water follows in the land based part of the hydrological cycle.
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