Hydrology

1. Hydrological cycle
2. Drainage Basin
3. Water Balance
4. Storm Hydrograph
5. Flooding
Hydrological cycle
What is hydrology?

What is hydrological
Cycle?

Define all the terms

Is a hydrological cycle an
Opened or closed system?
Why?

Why is it called a system?

 Hydrology and Hydrological cycle

(1) Hydrology : study of water

(2) Hydrological cycle: continuous

movement of water from land, sea and
air, back to land and it continues.
 Why is it called a system?

The Hydrological cycle is called a system

because it has a set of components which
are links to one another, inputs, outputs and
process (transfer) and storage.
 ATMOSPHERE
(ATMOSPHERE STORE)

E P T

HYDROSPHERE HYDROSPHERE BIOSPHERE

(OCEAN STORE) SURFACE STORE (VEGETATION
(LAKE, RIVERS & ICE) STORE)

LITHOSPHERE
(GROUNDWATER
STORE)
Key:
E-Evaporation
P-Precipitation
T-Transpiration

THE HYDROLOGICAL CYCLE AS A CLOSED SYSTEM

Hydrological cycle is a closed system. Why?
1. Water circulates continuously & the
processes is fuel by energy from the sun

2. There is no gain or loses in the cycle

3. There is a fixed amount of water.

 Water movement in H.C
PRECIPITATION
Evapotranspiration
interception

transpiration evaporation
evaporation
throughfall
Aeration zone stemflow
Surface storage
Run-off
Zone A Infiltration

Percolation SOIL
Water table Through flow

BEDROCK seepage
baseflow
Zone B
Stream flow
Groundwater GROUNDWATER
zone
 Terms
Aeration zone: zone between soil moisture zone and capillary zone
above water table.

Water-table: it separates Ground water zones that lies below and

Aeration zone /capillay fringe lines
above.

Ground water zone: Precipitation that succeeds in moving from the

soil layer down into the underlying bedrock will at some point reach an
area of permanent saturation that is known as the groundwater zone
 Terms:
• Precipitation: Form major inputs into the system, for example
rainfall and snow.

• Groundwater flow/baseflow: water transferred slowly laterally

below water table.

• Infiltration: The maximum rate at which water can pass

through the soil.

• Percolation: Water reaches underlying soil or rock layers,

which tend to be more compact (slow movement) create
groundwater storage.

• Throughflow: Water that flow laterally parallel to the earth’s

surface.
 Terms
• Interflow: The water, derived from precipitation, that
infiltrates the soil surface and then moves laterally
through the upper layers of soil above the water table
until it reaches a stream channel or returns to the surface
at some point downslope from its point of infiltration.

• Evaporation: physical process by which moisture loss into

atmosphere from water surfaces, including vegetation,
soil due to sun’s heat and effects of air movement.

• Throughfall: Water reaches the ground when it drops off

the leaves.

• Stemflow: Water reaches the ground when it flows down

the trunk.
 Terms:
• Transpiration: biological process by which water is
lost from a plant through stomata in its leaves.

• Interception: the first raindrops of a rainfall event

will fall on vegetation which shelters the underlying
ground. (interception storage)

• Overlandflow: Excess water which flow over earth

surface when precipitation is very heavy or when
soil becomes saturated.

• Seepage: slow movement of water through the soil.

• Evapotranspiration: Moisture which is loss directly

into atmosphere from water surface by process of
evaporation and by process of transpiration from
vegetation.
Water movement throughout
drainage basin.
• Look at the diagram:
1. List down input & output

2.Which are the storages &

flow.

3. How does water from

surface storage reaches
groundwater storage?

4. Name the flow marked A

and B.

5. Define terms shown in

diagrams.
 Terms:
• Soil moisture storage: amount of water held in the soil at one time.

• Interception storage: first raindrops of a rainfall event that fall on

vegetation which shelters the underlying ground. (water collected in
leaves of trees)

• Surface storage storage: rainfall that are not intercepted by

vegetation reaches the ground surface and fill in small surface
depression and excess water will overflow as run-off.

• Ground water storage: water which is held in pores and cervices

and its underlying bedrock.
 1. Name the flows shown
as A, B & C.

2. Describe what is meant by

percolation.

3.Describe and explain the

occurrence of the flows A,
B and C.

Flow of water in a cross section of soil and bedrock

• Flow A – overland flow (water that flow over the earth
surface.
Condition to occur: Heavy rainfall / the soil
becomes saturated, excess water flow
away the surface.

• Flow B –throughflow (horizontal movement of water

within soil layer.
Condition to occur:permeability of soil decreases with
increase in depth of soil (base of Aeration zone) and
when the ground is saturated.

• Flow C – baseflow/groundwater flow.(water that is

transferred laterally.
Condition to occur: when the water table (top of
groundwater saturation) rises above the
streambed, thus groundwater discharged into
stream.
Drainage basin
A. What is a drainage basin?
B. Is a drainage basin a closed/opened
system?
 Drainage basin
Drainage basin: the area that is drained by a
river and its tributaries.

It is an opened system. Because:

1. It has a series of inputs, processes and
outputs.
Water balance
1. Briefly define
the term water balance.

2. Write an equation for water

balance.

4. Label A, B, C & D and define

terms; soil moisture
budget, soil moisture surplus,
field capacity, soil moisture
deficit.

4. Importance of water balance

5. When do positive/negative
water balance occur?
Storm hydrograph 1. Why are some areas in
Brunei flooded?

2. What is river discharge?

3. Name the graph drawn to

a river discharge at a given
point & time.

3. What is a storm
Hydrograph?

4. Importance of a storm
Hydrograph.

5. Define terms; lag time,

Baseflow, falling/recession
Limb, rising limb, throughflow
etc.
Factors influencing shape of
Hydrographs:

1. Size of drainage basin

2. Soil types-sandy/clayey

• Geology-permeable
or impermeable

4. Gradient-steep/gentle

5. Vegetation cover

6. Urbanisation

•clue-look at infiltration rate, run-off

lead to high/low discharge & shorter
or longer lag time (time taken for
The river to fill up with water)
 Catchments of rivers X & Y hydrographs over
24 hours of the two rivers.

Using both diagram explain why the

discharge of the two rivers are different

Explain how each of these influence Describe the differences between

storm hydrograph: the discharges of rivers X and Y in
Drainage basin shape, geology, response to the rainfall
rainfall intensity, drainage density
 Flood
 What is flooding?

 Why occur?

 How to predict & Method of prevention?

 Students to read and find out from internet / textbook

case studies ; UK and Bangladesh:

1. Cause; Physical &human causes

2. Flood management & problems

What is flooding?
A body of water that rises to overflow land not
normally submerged.

Why does it occur?

1. During & after torrential rainfall.
•Very heavy rainfall, often produced by convectional
thunderstorms, tropical cyclones or monsoons, lead to flash
flooding.
•But also inability of drainage system to with huge amount
of water. (natural/unnatural)

2. Costal flooding:
• Low lying areas vulnerable to flooding.
•Heavy rainfall and storm surges.
•Tsunami (sudden displacement of ocean floor which sends
waves out in all directions).
3. River flooding:
River channel no longer able to contain the water flowing within it.
Excess water sweeps over banks and onto adjacent floodplain.

Factors that can increase river flooding:

1. Heavy & prolonged rainfall

2. A reduction in channel size.

3. The silting of channels, by excessive soil erosion

4. Action of landslips in displacing water in lakes or blocking

channels.

5. An increase in storm flow due to urbanisation

 Factors that can increase river flooding:

6. A reduction in size of floodplain by development.

7. Blocking of bridges & culvert entrances by debris

transported by river.

8. Failure of flood defence structures such as dams &

embankments.

9. Drainage basin: steep slope, impermeable bedrock,

Saturated or frozen soil, and deforestation encourage
rapid transfer of water to river channel.
 Flood
• Explain how river floods might be
predicted. Giving examples, describe the
methods which may be used to reduce the
effects of flooding.
• Describe the main features of river flood
plains and explain why flood plains may
present problems for human settlements.
 Human activities of flow
• Suggest how human activities might affect flows
within a river channel.
• How can changes in land use affect flows and
stores in a drainage basin?
• How can the abstraction (removal) and the
storage of water by humans affect flows
and stores within a drainage basin.
• Explain how urbanisation can affect river
channel flows.