Properties of Water Notes (1.1, 1.2, 1.3)
Name ___________________________
Water has several unique qualities.
1. Polarity--uneven distribution of charges across a molecule
2. Cohesion--the tendency of water molecules to form weak bonds and stick together
3. Surface tension--a force that acts on the particles at the surface of a liquid
4. Adhesion--the tendency of water to stick to other substances
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The Earth is covered with water over about 71% of the surface.
Water is the only substance that is found in all three states of matter at normal Earth temperatures.
97% of Earth's water is salt water in the ocean.
Only 3% of Earth's water is fresh water.
Of that 3% of fresh water, 70% is frozen and 30% is in rivers, lakes, underground, in the atmosphere
and in plants and animals.
Lakes and ponds form as water from streams and rivers flow downhill. The highest area is called the divide.
And the area that the water flows into is called the drainage basin.
Ponds are smaller and shallower than lakes and contain lots of life because light can get to most levels.
Lake turnover happens when the cold air in autumn sinks and mixes with the less cold air below it. This allows
oxygen and nutrients to mix and keeps the lake from becoming stagnant.
During summer, the warm water is on top. Since it is less dense, the warm water stays on top. More fish will be
toward the top. Turnover happens again in the spring.
Cycles occur in which lakes eventually dry up. The rate this occurs can increase because of nutrients being
added to water. This is called eutrophication.
2/3 of Earth's fresh water is tied up in ice. Great sheets of ice covering Antarctica and glaciers hold this ice.
Icebergs are broken off pieces of glaciers.
Surface water that sinks into the ground is called groundwater. Gravity causes the water to sink.
Groundwater will sink through permeable layers until it comes in contact with an impermeable layer.
The top region of the saturated zone is called the water table. An aquifer is a layer of permeable rock or
sediment that contains water. Aquifers hold water that we use. Fresh surface water ultimately flows to the
ocean. Ground water does the same, just slower. It can also flow in all directions due to pressure.
Aquifers are important:
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They filter water of harmful bacteria and chemicals
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1/5 of people in US use well water, especially in desert regions
A spring is a flow of water from the ground at a place where the surface of land dips below the water table.
A well is dug down to reach the aquifer.
A artesian well is caused by pressure below the surface pushing the water to the surface. The water is
contained between two impermeable layers.
A hot springs forms when water seeps into an area where volcanic activity has occurred. The water is heated
to the boiling point and under great pressure. It is pushed up through weak areas and has a continual flow of
water.
A geyser is a kind of hot spring. Hot water is guided through narrow channels and shoots into the sky when it
reaches the surface. Old Faithful is a geyser in Yellowstone National Park that approximately 20 times a day.
The eruptions last from 1.5 to 5 minutes.
Other notes and illustrations of water processes may be drawn on the back or in your notes:
Water Quality Notes (2.2, 2.3)
Name __________________________________
In the US, about 40% of water use is used in farming and raising livestock.
Draw an illustration of how much water is used by industry, agriculture, and domestic use.
Transportation and Recreation
Cities have built up on rivers and lakes to allow for transportation of goods and recreation on water sites.
Fall line influenced early settlement.
Canals help join bodies of water to allow for rivers to connect.
Fisheries and Aquaculture—Fresh water supplies the needs of many creatures, not just fish. Aquaculture
and hatcheries provide fish like catfish, trout and salmon, but they can add extra nutrients and pollution to
lakes and rivers. In hatcheries, fish are grown to be released so that lakes and rivers will remain stocked with
fish. Fish ladders are installed to allow fish to reach their breeding grounds.
Energy Uses of Water
 Water wheels use force of water to produce power to run grain mills.
 Hydroelectric dams use water to produce electricity.
 Nuclear energy production heats water to produce steam. Water is also used to cool the system.
 Dams change the landscape and shape of the river. Below the dam, speed and volume of water may
change forming new ecosystems. Above the dam, water may collect and form a lake covering a river
valley.
 Locks can be added to rivers when the water flows too fast or unpredictably for boats to be used. They
divide the river into different elevations to allow ships to navigate them.
 The Aswan Dam on the Nile River in Africa, controls flooding, but this blocks the flow of rich soil to the
valley below the dam. Farmers now have to add chemical fertilizers.
The freshwater we use must be clean to keep us healthy. The EPA sets standards of the concentration of
harmful substances that is allowed in our water. What is one part per million?
Water treatment plants clean the water we will drink.
Sewage system collects and treats wastewater from a city or town.
Septic system is a small wastewater system used by a home or business.
Point-source pollution and nonpoint-source pollution—How hard are each of these sources to find and correct?
Industry and Transportation prevention—In construction, less concrete will reduce the amount of automobile
waste going into groundwater or running water. Maintain, reduce, recycle
Agriculture creates pollution. Animal wastes entering a water source. Fertilizers and pesticides
How can we protect our water at home?
2.3 Global water shortages are happening more as the population of the world increases.
Not only is more water needed in the home, but agriculture increases.
In many places in the world, water is being removed from aquifers faster than it can be naturally replaced.
Overuse of water can actually cause an aquifer to collapse.
What can we do at home?
Sharing water with others
Ocean Environments (4.1, 4.2, 4.3)
Name ________________________________
Rivers flow into the sea.
Estuary
Salt Marsh
Mangrove
Three Marine Ecosystems
Shore
Open Ocean
Deep Ocean
Half the world's population lives within 50 miles of coastlines.
As we move away from the intertidal zone (shore) we move into zones on the continental shelf. Two habitats
exist in this zone.
Coral Reefs
Symbiosis
Rising CO2 levels wreak havoc on the world's coral reefs.
Out past the continental shelf is the open ocean.
The open ocean has 2 main zones--surface zone and deep zone.
Twilight Zone: Only a small amount of light can penetrate the water at this depth. As the water becomes
deeper, the pressure increases, too. Plants do not grow here. Only animals that have adapted to little light
survive.
The twilight zone is also known as the disphotic zone.
Animals that live in the twilight zone include: lantern fish, rattalk fish, hatchet fish, viperfish, and mid-water
jellyfish.
This murky part of the ocean begins at about 600 feet under the water and extends to the darkest part, which
begins about 3000 feet down.
Some squid and fish can use their bodies to make light. These creatures are said to have bioluminescence.
Hydrothermal vents—tube worms
4.3 Ocean Resources
The oceans provide us with living resources--algae produce oxygen, seafood and seaweed supply us with food.
Aquiculture and fishing
Oil drilling
Mineral deposits—platinum, gold, manganese
Ocean pollution and global warming
3.1, 3.2 Oceans
Density--is it all the same?
Salinity--is there a difference?
Salinity is the measure of the amount of dissolved salt contained in water.
Density is the measure of the amount of matter packed into a given volume.
How do salts enter the oceans? dissolved salts from river water, volcanoes
How are salts removed from oceans? subduction of plates
Why are some parts of the ocean saltier than others?
Salt deposits at the Dead Sea—The water in the Dead Sea is about 10 times more salty than the ocean.
Rivers flow into oceans. Sea water at the mouth of a river has less salinity.
Why is salinity higher here (polar zone—lots of ice and water)?
Gas exchange in the ocean--gases dissolve in water
Ocean animals use O2 and exhale CO2. Ocean
plants
use CO2 and release O2.
Carbon in CO2 is also used in shell building.
Ocean temperature varies by depth.
Ocean exploration
Alvin
sonar
3.2 Currents
Why are surface ocean currents important?
Compare surface ocean currents with wind currents
Why are deep sea currents important?
Downwelling moves oxygen into deeper water
where animals need it.
Upwelling moves nutrients from the deep up to the
surface.
(What does this remind you of?)
1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.2, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 3.1, 3.2 (save 3.3 and 3.4 til June)