1. 6.1 Running Water

2. Water Cycle
• The constant movement of water among the
oceans, the atmosphere, geosphere, and the
biosphere.

3. Infiltration
• The movement of surface water into rock or
soil through cracks and pore spaces

4. transpiration
• When plants absorb water and release it into
the atmosphere

5. Gradient
• The slope of a stream over a certain distance

6. Stream channel
• The course that the water in a stream follows

7. Discharge
• The quantity of water in a stream that passes
a given point in a period of time

8. tributary
• A stream that empties itself into another
stream

9. Base level
• The lowest point to which a stream can erode
its channel

10. Meander
• A looplike bend in the course of a stream

11. Key Concept
• Water constantly moves along the oceans, the
atmosphere, the solid earth, and the
biosphere. This unending circulation of Earth’s
water supply is the water cycle.

12. Key Concept
• Balance in the water cycle means the average
annual precipitation over Earth equals the
amount of water that evaporates.

13. Key Concept
• The ability of a stream to erode and transport
materials depends largely on its velocity.

14. Key Concept
• While gradient decreases between a stream’s
headwaters and mouth, discharge increases.