6/09/07

The Drainage Basin System

What is a Drainage Basin?

Tributary-A river which joins a larger river
Source-The upland area where the river begins
Confluence-The point at which two rivers join together
Watershed-The boundary dividing one drainage basin from another, a
ridge of high land.
Mouth-Where the river flows into the sea, or sometimes a lake.
Catchment-The area from which water drains into a particular
drainage basin.
Drainage Basin-The area which is drained by a river and its
tributaries.
Drainage Density-The total length of all the streams in the basin
divided by the total area of the basin.

How does the drainage basin system operate?

A drainage basin system is a part of the world’s hydrological (water)
cycle:
- The hydrological cycle is a closed system.
- The drainage basin is an open system.

The watercycle-Definitions
Evaporation-The process where water changes from a liquid to a
vapour.
Condensation-The process by which cooling vapour turns into a
liquid.
Precipitation-Water that falls on the Earth’s surface. E.g. rain, snow ,
hail.
Surface runoff-The movement of water over the land, possibly as a
river.
Transpiration-Plants giving off water vapour from their leaves.
Groundwater-Water that has sunk through the soil into the rocks
below.

The Drainage Basin

Inputs Stores and Flows Outputs
 Precipitation Interception River runoff
Surface water storage Evaporation
Surface runoff Transpiration
Infiltration
Soil water storage
Throughflow
Percolation
Groundwater storage
Groundwater flow

Drainage Basin Terms

Transpiration-Water vapour is released through the stomata in the
leaves
Interception-Water is stored on leaves and branches of vegetation
Throughflow-Water flows horizontally through the soil into the river
Percolation-Water flows vertically through the soil and rocks
Infiltration-Water seeps into the ground
Groundwater flow-Water flows horizontally through the rock and into
the river
Evaporation-Water turns from water droplets into water vapour
Surface runoff-water flows horizontally over the land into the river

What is a flood hydrograph?

A flood or storm hydrograph shows variations in a river’s discharge
over a short period of time, usually during a rainstorm. The starting
and finishing level show the base flow of the river. As storm water
enters the drainage basin the discharge rises, shown by the rising
limb, to reach the peak discharge which indicates the highest flow in
the channel. The receding limb shows the fall in the discharge back
to the base level. The time delay between maximum rainfall amount
and peak discharge is the lag time.

What affects the shape of a hydrograph?

Geology and soil
Gradient of the valley sides
Land use
Drainage density
Type and amount of precipitation.
Type of river, natural or artificial. Natural is quicker
Dams etc

2 Peaks?
Two peaks in a hydrograph could be caused by soil saturation, snow
melting or land use, i.e. farmers digging up water previously in sub-
surface storage.

Key Ideas
- A drainage basin is an area of land drained by a main river and
its tributaries
- The hydrological cycle is the global circulation of water. It is a
closed system.
- A drainage basin system is one part of the hydrological cycle. It
is an open system as it has inputs and outputs.
- A floor hydrograph shows how a river’s discharge changes in
response to a rainfall event.
- The shape of a flood hydrograph is influenced by a range of
physical and human factors.

Example of a hydrograph
40
Lag Time

Fallin
g L im 30
b
g Lim

Discharge (cumecs)
R isin
Rainfall (mm)

Overland flow and

throughflow 20

Peak Rainfall

60 f low
B ase
10
40

20

0
6 12 18 24 48 72

Hours after start of rainstorm