Water vocabulary review
The downhill slope of a stream. Stream gradient The downhill slope of a stream.
A body of saturated rock through which water can move readiy. Aquifer A body of saturated rock through which water can move readiy.
A broad strip of land on either side of a stream channel. Floodplain A broad strip of land on either side of a stream channel.
sill dike stock neck Alluvial fan A fan-shaped pile of sediment where a stream emerges onto a flat plain.
A smaller valley that terminates above a main valley. Hanging valley A smaller valley that terminates above a main valley.
A pronounced sinuous curve along a stream’s course. Meander A pronounced sinuous curve along a stream’s course.
A deposit on the inside of a curve of the stream. Point bar A deposit on the inside of a curve of the stream.
The percentage of a rock’s volume taken up by openings. Porosity The percentage of a rock’s volume taken up by openings.
The volume of water in a river. Discharge The volume of water in a river.
Till piled up along the front edge of a glacier. End moraine Till piled up along the front edge of a glacier.
A sharp ridge that separates adjacent glacially carved valleys. Arete A sharp ridge that separates adjacent glacially carved valleys.
An area with many sinkholes, caves and very few streams. Karst topography An area with many sinkholes, caves and very few streams.
A type of hot spring that erupts hot water. Geyser A type of hot spring that erupts hot water.
Unsorted rock debris carried by a glacier. Till Unsorted rock debris carried by a glacier.
An open fissure(crack) in a glacier. Crevasse An open fissure(crack) in a glacier.
Tarn A lake in a depression caused by glacial erosion. (at the base of the cirque)
The movement of water between the sea, the land and the atmosphere. Hydrologic cycle The movement of water between the sea, the land and the atmosphere.
A large mass of ice formed by the recrystallization of snow. Glacier A large mass of ice formed by the recrystallization of snow.
Cirque A steep, amphitheater like hollow in a mountain at the head of a glacial valley.
Oxbow lake A crescent-shaped lake occupying the abandoned channel of a stream meander.
The capacity of a rock to transmit fluid. Permeability The capacity of a rock to transmit fluid.
A sharp peak where cirques cut into a mountain on several sides. Horn A sharp peak where cirques cut into a mountain on several sides.