What is groundwater movement called?
Groundwater Recharge Rainfall and snowmelt can runoff into streams or soak into the ground. The process of water soaking into the ground to become groundwater is known as groundwater recharge.
What causes the movement of groundwater?
Water moves underground downward and sideways, in great quantities, due to gravity and pressure.
What is the movement of groundwater controlled by?
The rate of groundwater flow is controlled by two properties of the rock: porosity and permeability.
How does groundwater move quizlet?
How does ground water flow? Ground water flows downwards under the influence of gravity from higher areas of recharge to lower areas, where it may be either stored in aquifers, or discharged into streams. In ground water systems deeper = slower movement = longer residence time.
Where does groundwater flow?
Under natural conditions, ground water moves along flow paths from areas of recharge to areas of discharge at springs or along streams, lakes, and wetlands. Discharge also occurs as seepage to bays or the ocean in coastal areas, and as transpiration by plants whose roots extend to near the water table.
What is groundwater flow in geography?
In hydrogeology, groundwater flow is defined as the "part of streamflow that has infiltrated the ground, entered the phreatic zone, and has been (or is at a particular time) discharged into a stream channel or springs; and seepage water." It is governed by the groundwater flow equation.
What controls the rate of movement of groundwater quizlet?
Groundwater flow rates are controlled by the permeability of the aquifer through which the water is flowing and by the local hydraulic gradient (the drop in hydraulic head per unit distance; equal to the slope of the water table for unconfined aquifers).
How would you describe the movement of water within an aquifer?
After entering an aquifer, water moves slowly toward lower lying places and eventually is discharged from the aquifer from springs, seeps into streams, or is withdrawn from the ground by wells. Groundwater in aquifers between layers of poorly permeable rock, such as clay or shale, may be confined under pressure.
How does groundwater flow upward?
Groundwater can move upward against gravity because the hydraulic head at any point is a combination of both elevation and pressure. Hydraulic head is the level to which groundwater will rise in a well. Groundwater flows from high hydraulic head to low hydraulic head.
How and where does groundwater flow?
Under natural conditions, ground water moves along flow paths from areas of recharge to areas of discharge at springs or along streams, lakes, and wetlands. Discharge also occurs as seepage to bays or the ocean in coastal areas, and as transpiration by plants whose roots extend to near the water table.
What is flow through water?
In hydrology, throughflow, a subtype of interflow (percolation), is the lateral unsaturated flow of water in the soil zone, typically through a highly permeable geologic unit overlying a less permeable one. Water thus returns to the surface, as return flow, before or on entering a stream or groundwater.
What factors affect the rate of groundwater movement?
Topography and geology are the dominant factors controlling groundwater flow. Storativity describes the property of an aquifer to store water. Hydraulic conductivity is measured by performing a pumping test, i.e. by pumping one well and observing the changes in hydraulic head in neighboring wells.
How is the movement of groundwater related to the water cycle?
How does groundwater relate to the water cycle? First water evaporates and makes clouds, then precipitation falls either on land or water, if it hits the ground it infiltrates and becomes groundwater.
Can groundwater move upwards?
Groundwater can actually move upward or downward. Groundwater can move upward against gravity because the hydraulic head at any point is a combination of both elevation and pressure. Hydraulic head is the level to which groundwater will rise in a well.
Does groundwater flow downhill?
After a storm, water doesn't move straight down into the ground, but, rather, it moves both downward and horizontally along permeable layers. The water is moving downhill ("down-gradient") toward a creek at the bottom of the hill.
What is ground water flow in geography?
Groundwater flow – the deeper movement of water through underlying permeable rock strata below the water table. Limestone is highly permeable with lots of joints and can lead to faster groundwater flow. Infiltration – the downward movement of water into the soil surface.
How does through flow occur?
Throughflow is the sporadic horizontal flow of water within the soil layer (Figure 8m-1). It normally takes place when the soil is completely saturated with water. This water then flows underground until it reaches a river, lake, or ocean. Rates of water movement via throughflow are usually low.
What is meant by groundwater flow?
In hydrogeology, groundwater flow is defined as the "part of streamflow that has infiltrated the ground, entered the phreatic zone, and has been (or is at a particular time) discharged into a stream channel or springs; and seepage water." It is governed by the groundwater flow equation.
How does groundwater flow uphill?
As already noted, groundwater does not flow in straight lines. It flows from areas of higher hydraulic head to areas of lower hydraulic head, and this means that it can flow “uphill” in many situations.
How does the movement of groundwater relate to hydraulic gradient and hydraulic conductivity?
groundwater moves more quickly down steeper slopes than down shallow slopes. for this reason, the water table is known as the hydraulic gradient. groundwater flows more rapidly through sediments having greater permeability than through materials having lower permeability. this factor is known as hydraulic conductivity.