Water & Carbon Cycles
1. Intro to Water Cycles
System - An assemblage (group) of interrelated parts that work together
by way of some driving process. Systems function by having inputs and
outputs of energy and/or matter
What are examples of inputs of energy & matter? - Energy- from the sun
Matter- water in the form of precipitation
What are examples of outputs of energy & matter? - Energy- used up by
process such as evaporation
Matter- water in the form of evapotranspiration, channel flow
What are the 3 types of properties of a system? - Elements, Attributes &
Relationships
Elements - Things that make up the system
Attributes - Perceived characteristics of the elements
Relationships - Descriptions of how the various elements (and their
attributes) work together to carry out a process
What do all systems have? - A boundary within which they operate
Isolated systems - Have no interactions with anything outside the system
boundary. There are not inputs of energy or matter. These are very rare in
nature
Closed systems - Have inputs & outputs of energy but not matter
Open systems - Are ones where there are inputs & outputs of energy &
matter. Most ecosystems are open systems
Dynamic equilibrium - The tendency towards a natural state of balance
within the system. If forced out of dynamic equilibrium, the equilibrium
will be upset e.g. a storm causing flooding
Positive feedback - Where the effects of an action (an increased use of
fossil fuels) are amplified by a subsequent knock-on effect
Negative feedback - Where the effects of an action (an increase of CO2)
are reduced by a subsequent knock-on effect
What are examples of stores/components? - Soil, vegetation, bedrock
What are examples of flows/connections? - Groundwater, flow, overland
flow & through fall
Describe the positive feedback cycle -
What is the negative feedback cycle like? - The opposite affect
2. Global Systems & Water Stores
What is the Earth made up of? - 4 subsystems
Hydrosphere - The water of Earth
Atmosphere - The layer of gas between the Earth's surface and space
Lithosphere - The crust and the upper part of the mantle
Biosphere - Living things (plants, animals, bacteria, fungi etc)
What moves between the open subsystems? - Energy & Matter
What type of system is the Earth? - Cascading system
What are the 4 types of water? - -Oceanic water
-Cryospheric water- frozen as ice
-Terrestrial water- on/close to Earth's surface
-Atmospheric water
,What percentage of water is salt water? - 97%
What percentages are the types of fresh water? - -Glaciers & Ice caps-
79%
-Ground water- 20%
-Surface water- 1%
Diurnal changes - Changes over the period of a day
Seasonal changes - Changes from one season to another
Geological time scale changes – Changes over hundreds of thousands of
years
3. Global Distribution of Water Stores
What percentage of fresh water is stored in aquifers? - 20%
Aquifers - Vast underwater reservoirs
Unconfined Aquifer - Made of permeable & porous rocks, close to the
surface. Precipitation can percolate downwards & be stored in these rocks
Confining layer - Impermeable rock that stops water from percolating
down to the porous rock beneath
Confined Aquifer - Precipitation can't percolate from above because of
confining layer. It has to come 'sideways' from the hillside where the rock
is exposed at the surface
Percolate - Liquid filters gradually through a porous surface
Fossil Aquifers - Aquifers in the deserts of Africa, the Middle East and
Australia. Formed thousands of years ago when the climate in those
regions was much wetter
How are Aquifers in deserts exploited? - The water that's abstracted can't
be replenished in the desert climate
Soil water budget - Variety in soils' capacity to store & transfer water
What determines how quickly water transfers through soil & how much is
stored in it? - The size of rock fragments that make up the soil
Why do sandy soils hold little moisture? - Water is easily transferred
through the spaces between the particles
Porosity - A measure of how much rock is open space
Why does the water table rise and fall? - In response to groundwater flow,
water abstraction or recharge
What are the 5 types of cryospheric water? - -Permafrost
-Sea Ice
-Alpine Glaciers
-Ice Caps
-Ice sheets
What are the 4 types of terrestrial water? - -Surface water
-Ground water
-Soil water
-Biological water
Alpine Glaciers - Thick masses of ice found in deep valleys or in upland
hollows
Sea Ice - Forms when water is cooled to below freezing
Ice Sheets - Mass of glacial land ice over 50,000km2
Permafrost - Ground that remains at 0° or below for at least 2 years
Ice Caps - Thick layers of ice on land smaller than 50,000km2
, Ground water - Water that collects underground in the pores of rocks
Biological water - Water stored in all biomass
Soil water - Water that's held together with air in unsaturated upper
weathered layers of the Earth
If the Greenland Ice sheet melted, how much would sea level rise? - 6m
If the Antarctic Ice Sheet melts, how much would sea levels rise? - 60m
4. Hill slope hydrological cycle
Hill slope water cycle - The cyclical movement of water between a
hillslope, river channel and the atmosphere
Describe the hill slope water cycle -
What 5 factors affect the hill slope water cycle? - -Deforestation
-Urbanisation
-Farming
-Storms
-Seasonal Changes
How does deforestation affect the water cycle? - -The removal of trees
reduces interception and infiltration
-Overland flow increases
How does urbanisation affect the water cycle? - -If the slope is developed
for housing, impermeable surfaces will reduces infiltration
-Water will flow quickly through pipes to nearby river channels
How does farming affect the water cycle? - -Ditches drain the land &
encourage water to flow quickly to rivers
-Irrigation increases the amount of water on the ground
-Soil compaction increases surface run off
How do storms affect the water cycle? - Intense rainfall increases the
amount of rainfall reaching the ground and increases the magnitude of
stores
How do seasonal changes affect the water cycle? - Winter snowfalls &
frozen ground interrupt the water transfers & affect the magnitude of
stores
What are the fastest & slowest routes for water to reach rivers? - 1st-
Direct precipitation
2nd- Overland flow
3rd- Throughflow
Slowest- Groundwater flow
How do different ground materials affect the rate of infiltration? - -In
woodland, there are many channels created by roots & burrows
-In clay soils, water is retained
How does percolation affect rate of water movement? - -Slows it down
considerably
-Groundwater can be held for thousands of years
5. Soil Water Budget
Water Balance Equation - P = Q+E +/- change in storage
What does P stand for? - Precipitation
What does Q stand for? - Runoff
What does E stand for? - Evapotranspiration
1. Intro to Water Cycles
System - An assemblage (group) of interrelated parts that work together
by way of some driving process. Systems function by having inputs and
outputs of energy and/or matter
What are examples of inputs of energy & matter? - Energy- from the sun
Matter- water in the form of precipitation
What are examples of outputs of energy & matter? - Energy- used up by
process such as evaporation
Matter- water in the form of evapotranspiration, channel flow
What are the 3 types of properties of a system? - Elements, Attributes &
Relationships
Elements - Things that make up the system
Attributes - Perceived characteristics of the elements
Relationships - Descriptions of how the various elements (and their
attributes) work together to carry out a process
What do all systems have? - A boundary within which they operate
Isolated systems - Have no interactions with anything outside the system
boundary. There are not inputs of energy or matter. These are very rare in
nature
Closed systems - Have inputs & outputs of energy but not matter
Open systems - Are ones where there are inputs & outputs of energy &
matter. Most ecosystems are open systems
Dynamic equilibrium - The tendency towards a natural state of balance
within the system. If forced out of dynamic equilibrium, the equilibrium
will be upset e.g. a storm causing flooding
Positive feedback - Where the effects of an action (an increased use of
fossil fuels) are amplified by a subsequent knock-on effect
Negative feedback - Where the effects of an action (an increase of CO2)
are reduced by a subsequent knock-on effect
What are examples of stores/components? - Soil, vegetation, bedrock
What are examples of flows/connections? - Groundwater, flow, overland
flow & through fall
Describe the positive feedback cycle -
What is the negative feedback cycle like? - The opposite affect
2. Global Systems & Water Stores
What is the Earth made up of? - 4 subsystems
Hydrosphere - The water of Earth
Atmosphere - The layer of gas between the Earth's surface and space
Lithosphere - The crust and the upper part of the mantle
Biosphere - Living things (plants, animals, bacteria, fungi etc)
What moves between the open subsystems? - Energy & Matter
What type of system is the Earth? - Cascading system
What are the 4 types of water? - -Oceanic water
-Cryospheric water- frozen as ice
-Terrestrial water- on/close to Earth's surface
-Atmospheric water
,What percentage of water is salt water? - 97%
What percentages are the types of fresh water? - -Glaciers & Ice caps-
79%
-Ground water- 20%
-Surface water- 1%
Diurnal changes - Changes over the period of a day
Seasonal changes - Changes from one season to another
Geological time scale changes – Changes over hundreds of thousands of
years
3. Global Distribution of Water Stores
What percentage of fresh water is stored in aquifers? - 20%
Aquifers - Vast underwater reservoirs
Unconfined Aquifer - Made of permeable & porous rocks, close to the
surface. Precipitation can percolate downwards & be stored in these rocks
Confining layer - Impermeable rock that stops water from percolating
down to the porous rock beneath
Confined Aquifer - Precipitation can't percolate from above because of
confining layer. It has to come 'sideways' from the hillside where the rock
is exposed at the surface
Percolate - Liquid filters gradually through a porous surface
Fossil Aquifers - Aquifers in the deserts of Africa, the Middle East and
Australia. Formed thousands of years ago when the climate in those
regions was much wetter
How are Aquifers in deserts exploited? - The water that's abstracted can't
be replenished in the desert climate
Soil water budget - Variety in soils' capacity to store & transfer water
What determines how quickly water transfers through soil & how much is
stored in it? - The size of rock fragments that make up the soil
Why do sandy soils hold little moisture? - Water is easily transferred
through the spaces between the particles
Porosity - A measure of how much rock is open space
Why does the water table rise and fall? - In response to groundwater flow,
water abstraction or recharge
What are the 5 types of cryospheric water? - -Permafrost
-Sea Ice
-Alpine Glaciers
-Ice Caps
-Ice sheets
What are the 4 types of terrestrial water? - -Surface water
-Ground water
-Soil water
-Biological water
Alpine Glaciers - Thick masses of ice found in deep valleys or in upland
hollows
Sea Ice - Forms when water is cooled to below freezing
Ice Sheets - Mass of glacial land ice over 50,000km2
Permafrost - Ground that remains at 0° or below for at least 2 years
Ice Caps - Thick layers of ice on land smaller than 50,000km2
, Ground water - Water that collects underground in the pores of rocks
Biological water - Water stored in all biomass
Soil water - Water that's held together with air in unsaturated upper
weathered layers of the Earth
If the Greenland Ice sheet melted, how much would sea level rise? - 6m
If the Antarctic Ice Sheet melts, how much would sea levels rise? - 60m
4. Hill slope hydrological cycle
Hill slope water cycle - The cyclical movement of water between a
hillslope, river channel and the atmosphere
Describe the hill slope water cycle -
What 5 factors affect the hill slope water cycle? - -Deforestation
-Urbanisation
-Farming
-Storms
-Seasonal Changes
How does deforestation affect the water cycle? - -The removal of trees
reduces interception and infiltration
-Overland flow increases
How does urbanisation affect the water cycle? - -If the slope is developed
for housing, impermeable surfaces will reduces infiltration
-Water will flow quickly through pipes to nearby river channels
How does farming affect the water cycle? - -Ditches drain the land &
encourage water to flow quickly to rivers
-Irrigation increases the amount of water on the ground
-Soil compaction increases surface run off
How do storms affect the water cycle? - Intense rainfall increases the
amount of rainfall reaching the ground and increases the magnitude of
stores
How do seasonal changes affect the water cycle? - Winter snowfalls &
frozen ground interrupt the water transfers & affect the magnitude of
stores
What are the fastest & slowest routes for water to reach rivers? - 1st-
Direct precipitation
2nd- Overland flow
3rd- Throughflow
Slowest- Groundwater flow
How do different ground materials affect the rate of infiltration? - -In
woodland, there are many channels created by roots & burrows
-In clay soils, water is retained
How does percolation affect rate of water movement? - -Slows it down
considerably
-Groundwater can be held for thousands of years
5. Soil Water Budget
Water Balance Equation - P = Q+E +/- change in storage
What does P stand for? - Precipitation
What does Q stand for? - Runoff
What does E stand for? - Evapotranspiration
