Drainage Basin

Tributaries

river or stream flowing into a larger river or lake

Drainage basin

area drained by a river and its tributaries.it’s an open system – it receives water and other external influences and discharges water and material out of the system

Source

The origin/ starting point of the river

Confluence

When a smaller river flows through and joins the bigger river

River system / Channel network

comprises a main river and all its contributing tributaries.

Watershed

the edge of a drainage basin. It’s a raised piece of land that separates one drainage basin from another.

Mouth

Where the river ends

Floodplain

an area of low-lying ground adjacent to a river, formed mainly of river sediments and subject to flooding.

Open system

They allow for movement of energy and matter across its boundaries

Inputs

Precipitation, snow, rainfall,  frost, hail and dew & irrigation water/use of desalinated water

Output

Evaporation

Infiltration (flow)

• Water on the ground enters the soil

• The infiltration capacity is the maximum rate at which rain can be absorbed by soil in a given condition

Overland Flow (surface runoff) (flow)

Unconfined flow of water above ground / occurs when precipitation exceeds infiltration rate

Percolation (Flow)

When water goes into the ground

Storages

• Vegetation

• Aquifers

• Soil

• Cryosphere

Vegetation

1. the water that is caught and stored by vegetation

2. Interception: Water retained by the plant /Precipitation that does not reach the soil, blocked by leaves. 

1. Aquifers (permeable rocks that store groundwater inside)

1. Percolation

   1. Process of underground water moving slowly through the ground

2. Water table

   1. The upper surface of the infiltrated zone

1. Soil

1. Field capacity

   1. Amount of water held in the soil

2. Wilting points

   1. Minimum soil moisture content. Leading to permanent wilting

cryosphere (snow and ice environment)

The snow, glacier, permafrost, and frozen ground are significant storage and sources of freshwater

Transpiration

water evaporates into atmosphere through plants

Pool

a part of the river often characterized by slow-moving water

Base flow

the part of a river's discharge that is provided by groundwater seeping into the bed of a river. It is a relatively constant flow although it increases slightly following a wet period.

Aquifers

rock and sediment that stores groundwater