The Water Cycle and Drainage Basin System 2

WATER CYCLE 2:
drainage basin systems

Inputs Precipitation
Flows Throughfall Infiltration Overland

flow(s)
Percolation
Stemflow Throughflow Groundwater
Channel flow flow
Stores Interception
Vegetation
Surface store Soil moisture Groundwater
store Channel store store
Outputs Evaporation Transpiration

Channel
discharge to
oceans
We are grateful to Hodder for their

WJEC Focus Box 3.1.2
permission to use the diagrams in
this resource. Eduqas Focus Box 2.1.2
Water Cycle 2
The drainage basin system
• The drainage basin is a subset of the global
hydrological cycle
• It is defined as a catchment area forming part of the
Earth's surface area which is drained by a particular
stream or river
• It is an open system which allows energy and matter
to be transferred across its boundary (the watershed
or drainage divide) from external areas
Class activity
Why is a river drainage basin an open system,
whereas the global water cycle is a closed system?
Water Cycle 2
Drainage basin inputs
• There is only
one physical
input into a
drainage basin:
precipitation
• Precipitation
types are
varied: they
includes rain,
snow, sleet
Class activity
hail and frost
Why do drainage basin inputs vary from
(c) Hodder Education [Edexcel
level Geography Book 2 (Dunn)]
A-
place to place or from time to time?
Water Cycle 2
Precipitation variations
• The duration and intensity of precipitation both affect
how a drainage basin system responds
• Very high-intensity rainfall of 50-100 millimetres per
hour is rare; it can result in flash flooding
• In Boscastle, 185mm rainfall fell in just five hours in
2004 (equivalent to two months of normal rainfall)
• Low intensity but relatively long duration rainfall is far
more common in the UK
Class activity
What processes could explain the link between high-
intensity rainfall and flash flooding?
Water Cycle 2
Drainage basin flows (1)
Class
activity
How many
water flows
are shown
in this
diagram?
(c) Hodder Education

[Edexcel A-level Geography
Book 2 (Dunn)]
Water Cycle 2
• Rainwater dripping from leaves and branches
towards the ground is called throughfall
• Water which flows to the ground via vegetation
stems and trunks is stemflow
• Infiltration is the movement of water from the
ground surface into the soil
• Throughflow is the movement of water laterally
(sideways) through the soil, via (1) a matrix of pore
spaces, fissures and (2) pipes (animal burrows)
Class activity
Why might drainage basin water flows vary from
Water Cycle 2
• Percolation is the transfer of water from the soil into
the underlying bedrock
• Groundwater flow is the vertical and lateral
movement of water through a drainage basin’s
underlying rock due to gravity and pressure
• Coarse-grained sedimentary rocks show high
permeability and permit high groundwater flow;
fine-grained igneous rocks are relatively impermeable
Class activity
What are the implications of the varying geology of
different drainage basins for river flow in dry seasons?
Water Cycle 2 Overland flow is the movement of
Overland flow(s) a sheet of water across the ground
• Infiltration-excess
overland flow occurs
when rainfall intensity
is so great that not all
water can infiltrate,
irrespective of how dry
or wet the soil is
• Saturation-excess
overland flow happens
if rainfall continues for
a long time. The entire
soil becomes
saturated; overland
(c) Hodder Education (Geography Review) flow begins
Water Cycle 2
Overland flow(s)
Class activity
Why would different types of overland flow result in differing
lag times shown on storm hydrographs?
(c) Hodder Education (Geography Review)
Water Cycle 2
Drainage basin stores
1. interception store - leaf and plant surfaces
2. vegetation store - water held in the biomass itself
3. surface store - water collected on the ground in
depressions and hollows, and also snow cover
4. soil moisture store - water held in soil pores space
5. channel store - water held in the river channel itself
6. groundwater store - water stored in solid rock and in
any superficial deposits e.g. gravels below the soil
Class activity
Why might drainage basin water storage vary from place
to place or from time to time?
Water Cycle 2
Drainage basin stores and limits
Class activity
Describe and explain the changes in water storage and flows
during the storm shown in the diagram
(c) Hodder Education [Edexcel A-level Geography Book 2 (Dunn)]
Water Cycle 2
Drainage basin outputs
• Channel discharge is the water leaving a drainage
basin via its main river during a unit of time
• Evaporation is the change in state of water from a
liquid to a gas. Meteorological factors influence the
rate of evaporation (temperature and wind speed)
• Transpiration is the diffusion of water from
vegetation into the atmosphere. Water vapour is lost
through the stomata (pores) of leaves
Class activity
Why might drainage basin water outputs vary from
Water Cycle 2
Drainage basin outputs
Precipitation (mm) and river flow (mm
• Precipitation 180
equivalent) for a river in Scotland
sometimes falls as 160

snow in Winter 140
120
• It can be stored on the 100
ground for days or 80
60
months before melting 40
• This delays the loss of 20
0
water from the J F MAM J J A S O N D
drainage basin
Class activity
Describe and explain the variations in precipitation (blue) and
river discharge (red) shown in the diagram
Water Cycle 2
Plenary
• Precipitation varies according to type, amount,
duration and intensity
• Flows include different types of overland flow, in
addition to stemflow, throughflow, percolation,
groundwater flow and other water transfers
• Interception plays an important role in preventing or
allowing rainwater to move to other stores
• Local variations in soil and rock type play an important
role in river catchment hydrology
• Water leaves the drainage basin as evaporation,
transpiration and channel discharge

The Water Cycle and Drainage Basin System 2

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Water Cycle and Drainage Basin System 2

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

The Water Cycle and Drainage Basin System 2

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

WATER CYCLE 2:

drainage basin systems

Flows Throughfall Infiltration Overland

Outputs Evaporation Transpiration

We are grateful to Hodder for their

(c) Hodder Education

sometimes falls as 160

You might also like