Earth’s Water

Only 1% of the Earth’s water is

usable and accessible for
consumption.
• Evaporation: Process of changing from a liquid
to a gas
– Two factors affecting evaporation
• Temperature
• Surface area
• Transpiration: process by which plants release
water vapor into the atmosphere
• Evapotranspiration: How the atmosphere gets
moisture as a combination of evaporation and
transpiration.
• Infiltration: water seepage thru the ground
 The Water Table

• Water Table: boundry that separates the zone

of saturation from the zone of aeration
 The Water Budget
1. Precipitation (P) – Main Source of water
2. EP (Potential evaportation) = Heat
3. P/EP ratio = P divded by EP = Climate type of area
4. Storage (st) = Amount of water stored in the ground
5. Δ storage = change in storage
• If negative – Δ st = usage (evaporation)
• If positive + Δ st = rechagre infiltration
• Ea (actual evapotranspiration) – amount of moisture
that actually evaporates
• Deficit = shortage of water = drought
• Surplus = extra water = runoff
 Factors of Infiltration
1. Ground Saturation – saturated ground means
no infiltration, unsaturated ground means
infiltration
 Factors of Infiltration
2. Slope of Land
– Steep Slope = little
infiltration
– Gentle Slope = a lot of
infiltration
 Factors of Infiltration Infiltration Vs. Permeability

5
• Permeability (rate of 4

Permeability
infiltration) 3
Line 1
– Larger particles = 2

1
greater permeability =
0
large pore space Infiltration

Infiltration Vs. Slope Infiltration Vs. Ground Saturation

5 5
4 Ground Satruration 4
3
Slope

3
Line 1 Line 1
2 2
1 1
0 0
Infiltration Infiltration
 Runoff
• Runoff: Water that
does not infiltrate
• This occurs when:
1. Ground is saturated
2. Steep Slope
3. Impermeable ground
(water can’t get
through)
4. No vegetation
 Porosity
• Porosity: percent of pore space
• NOT EFFECTED BY PARTICLE SIZE
• Equation:
– water volume ÷ total volume of sediments x
100
 Porosity Factors
• Shape of particles
– Round sediments = more porosity
– Angular sediments = less porosity
 Porosity Factors
• Packing of Sediments
– Well packed = less
porosity
– Poorly packed = more
porosity
 Porosity Factor
• Sorting of sediments
– Well sorted = more
porosity
– Poorly sorted = less
porosity
 Porosity Factors
• Size has a constant relationship
– Sediment size does not affect porosity at all

Porosity and Sediment Size

2.5
2
Porosity

1.5 Small
Medium
1
Large
0.5
0
Small Medium Large
Sediemnt Size
 Capillarity
• Capillarity- water rises
thru small pore
spaces
Capillarity Vs. Pore space size

12
10
Capillarity

8
6 Line 1
4
2
0
Small Meduim Large
Pore Size
Think of a straw in a soda
 Ground water experiment
• Which tube has:
– Greatest Permeability and the least permeability
– Greatest porosity and lowest porosity
– Greatest capillarity
– Greatest runoff
– Retain the least water?