Lesson 6.1 Running Water

Lesson 6.
1 Running Water
In one paper, slide, explain the water cycle and
show the following steps in the cycle then define
them:
Evaporation
Condensation
Precipitation
Runoff
Infiltration
Learning Objectives
1- To Explain how the water cycle circulates Earth’s water supply in an

outstanding cycle.
2- To explain how the water cycle is kept in balance.
3- To describe the ability of a stream to erode and transport material.
4- To compare and contrast the changes in gradient and discharge
between a stream’s headwaters and mouth.
5- To define base level.
Success Criteria
1- I can explain how the water cycle circulates Earth’s water supply in
an outstanding cycle.
2- I can explain how the water cycle is kept in balance.
3- I can describe the ability of a stream to erode and transport material.
4- I can compare and contrast the changes in gradient and discharge
between a stream’s headwaters and mouth.
5- I can define base level.
New Vocabulary
Infiltration Stream Channel Gradient
Discharge Tributary Meander

Water Is Everywhere
 On Earth – oceans, glaciers, rivers, lakes, air,

and soil. All of them make up Earth’s
hydrosphere.
 Most of Earth’s water - about 97.2 % - is
stored in oceans.
 Ice sheets and glaciers account for lakes,
streams, groundwater, and the atmosphere
(the amount may seem like a tiny percent of
Earth’s water, but the actual quantities are
great).
The Water Cycle
 Water constantly moves

among the oceans, the
atmosphere, the geosphere,
and the biosphere (the water
cycle).
 The water cycle is a
worldwide system powered
by energy from the sun and
by gravity.
The Water Cycle
 What happens to precipitation that falls on land?

 Some of it slowly soaks into the ground through infiltration.
 Infiltration: Is the movement of surface water into rock or soil through cracks
and pore spaces.
 The water gradually moves through the land and actually seeps into lakes,
streams, or the ocean.
 When the rate of rainfall exceeds Earth’s ability to absorb it, the excess water
flows over the surface into lakes and streams in a process called “runoff”.
The Water Cycle
 Much of that runoff returns to the atmosphere through evaporation from the soil,
lakes, and streams,
 Plant also absorb water and release it into the atmosphere through
transpiration.
 When precipitation falls in very cold areas – at high elevations or high latitudes –
the water may not immediately soak in, run off, or evaporate. Instead it may
become part of glacier.
 Balance in the water cycle means the average annual precipitation over Earth
equals the amount of water that evaporate and transpires.
Exit Ticket
 What is the water cycle?

 What does it mean to say Earth’s water cycle is balanced?
 What is infiltration?
Stream Flow
 Gravity influences the way water makes its way to the oceans.
 Streams and rivers carry water downhill from the land to the see.
 The time this journey takes depends on the velocity of the stream.
 Velocity: Is the distance that water travels in a period of time.
 Some flow streams flow at less than “1 km / hr”, whereas a few rapid ones may flow faster
than “30 km / hr”.
Stream Flow
 Along straight stretches, the highest stream velocities are near the center of the channel just
below the surface.
 The center of the channel is where friction is lowest.
Stream Flow
 The ability of a stream to erode and transport materials depends largely on its velocity.
 Even slight changes in velocity greatly change the amount of sediment that water can
transport.
 Several factors determine the velocity stream:
 Gradient
 Shape
 Size
 Roughness of its channel
 Discharge.
Gradient
Gradient
 A stream gradient: Is the course the water in a stream follows.

 Gradient: Is the slope or steepness of a stream channel.
 Gradient is usually expressed as the vertical drop of a stream over a certain distance.
 Portions of the lower Mississippi River have very low gradient of 10 cm / km or less.
 By contrast, some mountain streams tumble downhill at a gradient of 40 m / km.
 The gradient of such mountain streams is 400 times steeper than that of the lower
Mississippi.
 Gradient varies over a stream’s length and between streams.
 The steeper the gradient, the more energy the stream has as it flows downhill.
Channel Characteristics
 As the water in a stream flows, it encounters friction from the sides and the bottom
of its channel.
 This friction slows the forward movement of the water.
 The shape, size, and roughness of the channel affect the amount of friction.
 For example, an irregular channel filled with boulders creates enough turbulence to
slow the stream significantly.
 Water in a smooth channel flows more easily.
 Larger channels also have more contact with the channel surfaces.
Discharge
Discharge
 The discharge of a stream is the volume of water flowing past a certain point in a
given unit of time.
 Discharge is usually measured in cubic m / s.
 The discharges of most rivers change with rainfall and snowmelt.
 The size and velocity of the stream also changes when discharge changes.
 The stream channel widens and deepens to handle additional water.
 As the size of the channel increases, there is less friction and the water flows more
swiftly.
Discharge
 The construction of urban centers around a stream channel affects discharge.

 For example, streets, parking lots, and building cover soil that once soaked up water.
 Less water soaks into the ground and runoff increases, especially at times of heavy
rainfall.
 As a result, the magnitude and frequently of flood can increase.
 Also, because less water soaks into the ground, the dry season flow of stream is
reduced.
Changes from Upstream to Downstream
 One useful way to study a stream is to look at its profile.

 A stream profile: is a cross-sectional view of a stream from its source, or headwater,
to its mouth – the point downstream where the river empties into another body of water
 While gradient decreases between a stream’s headwaters and mouth, discharge
increases.
 The amount of discharge increases because more and more tributaries enter the main
channel as it moves downstream.
 A tributary: Is a stream that empties into another stream.
 In most humid regions, the groundwater supply adds even more water.
 As the river moves downstream, its width, depth, and velocity change with the
increased volume of water downstream contradicts what people may think about
mountain streams.
 Although a mountain stream may look like a violent, gushing flow of water, its average
velocity is often less than the average velocity of a river near its mouth.
 The difference in velocity is mostly due to the great efficiency of the larger
downstream channel.
 In the headwaters area where the gradient may be steep, water often flows in a small
channel over many boulders.
 The small channel and rough bed increase friction.
 This increase in friction scatters the water and slows its movement.
 However, downstream the channel is usually smoother so that it offers less resistance
to flow.
 The width and depth of the channel also increase toward the mouth to handle the
greater discharge.
Base Level
 There is a lower limit to how deep a stream can erode its channel.
 Base level: Is the lowest point to which a stream can erode its channel.
 The base level is the level at which the amount of a stream enters the ocean, a lake, or
another stream.
 There are two types of base level:
 Ultimate base level.
 Temporary base level.
Base Level
Base Level
 In the picture, sea level is the ultimate base

level because it’s the lowest level that stream
erosion can lower the land.
 Temporary base levels include lakes,
resistant layers of rock, and main streams
that act as base level for their tributaries.
 Example: When a stream enters a lake, its
velocity quickly approaches zero.
 Its ability to erode ceases.
Base Level
 A stream is a broad, flat-bottomed valley that

is near its base level often develops a course
with many bends called “meanders”.
 If base level dropped or the land was
uplifted, the river would be considerably
higher than base level.
 The river would have excess energy and
flow faster as a result.
Base Level
 The river could then down cut its channel.

 Down cutting occurs when a stream erodes
the bottom of its channel resulting in a
deepening of the channel.
 A river that winds through a steep, narrow
valley, as in the picture, is one outcome of
down cutting.

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Lesson 6.

1- To Explain how the water cycle circulates Earth’s water supply in an

Infiltration Stream Channel Gradient

Discharge Tributary Meander

 On Earth – oceans, glaciers, rivers, lakes, air,

 Water constantly moves

 What happens to precipitation that falls on land?

 What is the water cycle?

 A stream gradient: Is the course the water in a stream follows.

 The construction of urban centers around a stream channel affects discharge.

 One useful way to study a stream is to look at its profile.

 In the picture, sea level is the ultimate base

 A stream is a broad, flat-bottomed valley that

 The river could then down cut its channel.

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