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River Systems 01/21/1511-1b pgs. 272-274
IN: Which stage of the water cycle brings most of the water to Nevada?
Terms to Learn and ObjectivesTerms to learn:
*erosion *tributary *drainage basin *divide*channel *load
Objectives:Identify the watershed of the Colorado River.Determine the location of the Continental
Divide.Explain factors the effect how a river causes
erosion on the land.
What is this a picture of?Grand
Canyon
What carved the canyon?Colorado
River
What is this process called?Erosion
Colorado River System
What do rivers do?ErosionTransportationDeposition
Erosion - the removal and transport of surface material, such as rock and soil.
River Systems
Tributaries – smaller streams or rivers that flow into larger ones.
Drainage basin (also sometimes called a watershed) – the land drained by a river system.
Cut and paste the diagram of the Colorado River Drainage Basin.
Color each of the five tributaries a different color.
Label each tributary.
The Colorado River Watershed5 main tributaries:*Green *San Juan*Little Colorado*Virgin*Gila
Divide - an area of higher ground than the basins it separates.
All water on this side drains into the Pacific Ocean.
All water on this side drains into the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean.
Find the Continental DividePut a dot at the end of each tributary that
leads from the east to the west.Connect the dots.
The line should connect right about here
Stream ErosionAll rivers start as streams.As more rock and soil are transported downstream, channels become wider and deeper.
Channel – the path that a stream follows.
What factors effect the rate of stream erosion?GradientDischarge Load
Gradient – the steepness of a river or stream. (kind of like the slope)
Discharge - the amount of water a stream or river carries in a given amount of time.
Load - the materials carried in a stream’s water.
OUT: How does the water cycle help develop river systems?
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