Mississippi River Basin

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Mississippi River Basin
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NC River Basins Map
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• Water Resources
• Aquifer Depletion
• NOAA Water Cycle
• Water Cycle

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The Water Cycle
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Freshwater Sections 9.2 9.3 Stream
Development, Lakes, Wetlands
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Headwaters Region where water first accumulates
to supply a stream. Common to be high in
the mountains where falling precipitation
accumulates in small gullies and forms briskly
moving streams
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Stream
Headwaters
Tundra Lake headwaters of Stein River Lytton,  
1983 August 07 (British Columbia, Canada)
people.uleth.ca/holzmann/photos/index.html
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Stream
Headwaters
http//www.2steger.de/canada/40_Stein_Valley_Trave
rse.htm
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Stream Channel Narrow pathway carved into
sediment or rock by the movement of surface
water.
Stream Bank Ground bordering each side of a
stream that keeps the moving water confined
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Stream Banks
Stream Banks
Stream Channel
http//www.littleriverbigfuture.org/images/In20tx
t20pics/Stream_erosion_1.jpg
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Immature River Young river erodes path through
sediment or rock forming a V-shaped channel.
V-shaped channels have steep sides and sometimes
form canyons or gorges.
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Inner gorge of the Grand Canyon, located in
northwestern Arizona. Carved by the power of the
Colorado River, the canyon stretches for 277
miles. http//www.scienceclarified.com/landforms/B
asins-to-Dunes/Canyon.html
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Mature River As the river becomes more mature,
the V-shaped valley will be eroded away forming a
broader, wider river.
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This bridge across the Danube River links Hungary
with Slovakia http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image
MariaValeriaBridge.jpg
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Meander A bend or curve in a stream channel
caused by moving water
Meanders of the Rio Cauto at , Cuba. http//en.wik
ipedia.org/wiki/ImageRio-cauto-cuba.JPG
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• Water in the straight parts of a stream flows at
  different velocities depending on the location of
  the water in the channel.

• Generally, water in the center is flowing faster
  at the maximum velocity while water along the
  bottom and sides flows more slowly because it
  experiences friction as it moves against the
  land.

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• The water moving along the outside of a meander
  curve experiences the greatest rate of flow
  within the meander.

• The water that flows along this outside part of
  the curve continues to erode away the sides of
  the streambed, thus making the meander larger.

• Along the inside of the meander, the water moves
  more slowly and deposition is dominant.

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Oxbow Lake A lake formed from a cut-off meander

• After some degree of winding it is common for a
  stream to cut off a meander and once again flow
  along a straighter path.
• The stream then deposits material along the
  adjoining meander and eventually blocks off its
  water supply.
• The blocked-off meander becomes and oxbow lake,
  which eventually dries up.

http//homepage.ntlworld.com/harry.wickens/borneo/
borneo-070.jpg
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http//www.gly.uga.edu/railsback/1121RiverOxBow.jp
eg
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Alluvial Fan Sloping depositional features
formed at the bases of slopes and composed mostly
of sand and gravel.

• Streams that lose velocity also lose their
  ability to carry sediment.
• In dry regions mountain streams commonly flow
  down narrow valleys onto broad, flat, valley
  floors. As a stream flows from the mountain to
  the flat valley, the streams gradient may
  suddenly decrease causing the stream to drop its
  sediment as a fan-shaped deposit.
• A streams gradient is the difference in
  elevation between two points on the stream
  divided by the distance along the
  stream(Essentially the slope of the stream)

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http//www.tulane.edu/sanelson/images/allfan.gif
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http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ImageAlluvial_fan_01
.JPG
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Delta When a stream enters a large body of water
(example an ocean), the stream looses its
velocity and the streams load is deposited in a
triangular shape.

• Usually silt and clay particles
• As a delta develops, sediments build up and slow
  the stream water, sometimes even blocking its
  movement.
• Smaller distributary streams then form to carry
  the stream water through the developing delta.

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http//www.sln.org.uk/geography/schools/blythebrid
ge/delta.jpg
http//earth.usc.edu/slund/systems/topic7pics/ima
ge9.gif
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http//serc.carleton.edu/images/research_education
/katrina/map_of_delta.v2.gif
http//earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id
2521
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Lake A depression in the surface materials of a
landscape that collects and holds water

• Lakes accumulate water from streams, runoff,
  precipitation, and springs.

Reservoir A man-made structure used for storing
water for later use. 1st A sturdy dam is built.
2nd A stream is allowed to flow behind the dam
and will eventually fill the area with water.
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Falls Lake www.saw.usace.army.mil/falls/index.htm

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Wetland A land area that is covered with water
for a large part of the year.

• Include bogs, marshes, and swamps
• Serve as a filtering system and improve water
  quality
• Provide vital habitats for and abundance of
  wildlife.

http//www.iwla.org/index.php?id416
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http//i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa19/forjerz/Su
nday-080.jpg
http//dcm2.enr.state.nc.us/ncwp/aerial.jpg
http//h2o.enr.state.nc.us/ncwetlands/gbheron.JPG
http//h2o.enr.state.nc.us/ncwetlands/swsms.html
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Estuary Where the lower end of a freshwater
river or stream enters the ocean

• The water in estuaries is a mix of freshwater and
  salt water called brackish.
• Estuaries are nurseries to the young of many
  different species including ocean fish species.

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• Some large estuaries include the Chesapeake Bay
  in Maryland/Virginia and the Pamlico Sound in
  North Carolina.

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Groundwater
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