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Definition
| The process in which rocks are broken up by the action of water, the atmosphere, and organisms. |
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| A subsurface rock or sediment unit that is porous and permeable. To be an aquifer it must have these traits to a high enough degree that it stores and transmits useful quantities of water. |
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Artesian Formation [image] |
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Definition
| The arrangement of a permeable later of rock(aquifer) sandwiched between two layers of impermeable rock. |
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Evapotranspiration [image] |
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Definition
| All methods of water moving from a liquid to water vapor in nature. Includes both evaporation and transpiration. |
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| A hot spring that intermittently erupts a spray of steam and hot water. Caused by the heating of ground water within a confined opening in hot rock. |
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Definition
| All the waters of Earth, including both surface and subsurface water. |
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| A layer of rock, sediment or soil that does not allow water to pass through. This could be caused by a lack of pore space or pore spaces that are so small that water molecules have difficulty passing through. |
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| A measure of how well a material can transmit water. Materials such as gravel, that transmit water quickly, have high values of permeability. Materials such as shale, that transmit water poorly, have low values. Permeability is primarily determined by the size of the pore spaces and their degree of interconnection. |
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Definition
| The volume of pore space in a rock, sediment or soil. Usually expressed as a percentage. This pore space can include openings between grains, fracture openings and caverns. |
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Definition
| The refilling of soil water supply at times when plants need little moisture. |
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Definition
| Condition of having rainfall greater than the need for moisture when the soil is already saturated. |
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Definition
| The condition where plants draw water from the soil at times when the need for moisture is greater than the rainfall. |
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Definition
| Describes the income and the spending of water in a region. |
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Definition
| The movement of water between the atmosphere, ground and surface water bodies through the processes of evaporation, precipitation, infiltration, percolation, transpiration and runoff. Also known as the "hydrologic cycle". |
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Definition
| A level beneath the Earth's surface, below which all pore spaces are filled with water and above which the pore spaces are filled with air. The top of the zone of saturation in a subsurface rock, soil or sediment unit. |
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