Exam 17: Groundwater

California's Central Valley is an important agricultural area for U.S.fruit and vegetable production.Because of the semiarid climate there, farmers must irrigate their crops.Which environmental problem do you anticipate as a result?

What physical features are evidence of a karst landscape?

What geologic process is responsible for the geothermal features in Yellowstone National Park?

Explain how groundwater can sustain streams even during a long drought.

What is different about mineral deposits at Mammoth Hot Springs compared to other geothermal features in Yellowstone National Park? From which rock were these mineral deposits derived?

Examine the groundwater flow patterns around Point X.Into which bodies of water (if any)will water that infiltrates at Point X eventually discharge?

Groundwater migrates from areas of low pressure to areas of high pressure.

When precipitation occurs over a forest, only 25% of the water will make it through the canopy to the forest floor, where other factors may affect how much will infiltrate.

Which of the following characteristics is not true of groundwater?

Undulations of the water table mimic those of the ground surface.What would happen to those undulations in the water table if all rain were to cease?

While on vacation, you visit a local Imax theater and see a movie about cave diving in the Yucatan Peninsula.In one of the caves, which is currently filled with water, you notice the divers swimming past some stalactites and stalagmites.If the water table is now above the level of the ceiling of the cave, what does the presence of the cave decorations indicate about past water table levels?

Stalactites grip tightly to the floor of a cave whereas stalagmites hang from the ceiling.

Which environmental issue most commonly affects groundwater aquifers in coastal or island areas?

What force pushes groundwater from pore space to pore space when below the water table?

Which of the following regions is famous for its artesian wells?

How do scientists map the water table?

A typical rate of groundwater flow for many aquifers is approximately ________.

The majority of groundwater occurs as underground rivers.

What is the difference between a flowing artesian well and a nonflowing artesian well?

What is the term used to describe the hypothetical line the water in a confined aquifer would rise to if it weren't trapped?