Groundwater Lecture Notes

Flashcards summarizing key concepts and vocabulary from the groundwater lecture notes.

Groundwater

Water in the subsurface that was once precipitation, typically filling the space between soil pores.

Hydrogeology

The study of groundwater.

Aquifer

A geological formation that can store and transmit water.

Porosity

The ratio between the volume of pore space and the total volume of the sample.

Permeability

A measure of the ease of flow of a fluid through a porous solid.

Hydraulic gradient

The difference in hydraulic head between two points, comprising elevation head and pressure head.

Darcy’s Law

A fundamental principle used in hydrogeology that describes the flow of water through porous media.

Unconfined Aquifer

An aquifer where the upper water surface is at atmospheric pressure.

Confined Aquifer

An aquifer bounded above and below by impermeable materials, causing groundwater to be under pressure.

Vadose Zone

The unsaturated zone above the water table, where soil particles contain both air and water.

Phreatic Zone

The saturated zone below the vadose zone, where soil particles are fully filled with water.