EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Some precipitation moves from high areas to low areas on the earth’s surface and into surface water bodies. This is known as surface runoff.

Detailed explanation-2: -Runoff is precipitation that does not soak into the soil but instead moves on the Earth’s surface toward streams. Streamflow is water moving across the Earth’s surface in streams.

Detailed explanation-3: -Subsurface water that has not been absorbed by the soil is called groundwater. The level at which groundwater is found in the soil is called the water table. When the water table is high enough to rise above the surface in low areas, a swamp, a lake or a stream is formed (see Section 1.5).

Detailed explanation-4: -In relation to the water resource assessment, surface runoff is the fraction of precipitation that does not infiltrate at the land surface and may be retained at the surface or result in overland flow toward depressions, streams and other surface water bodies.

Detailed explanation-5: -Precipitation takes one of two paths once on the ground. It runs over the surface into rivers, lakes or the ocean, and becomes surface water, or it soaks into the earth and becomes groundwater.