levo

Water and Carbon Cycles

Mass Balance in a Drainage Basin

  • 3 things to know
  • Component 1

Overview

Recall questions on the inputs and outputs of a drainage basin, how its mass balance is calculated and how the result is read.

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Your recallNot started
Key term

What are the inputs to a drainage basin system when calculating mass balance in the water cycle?

Key term

How would you interpret a mass balance calculation where inputs equal outputs?

Numbers

What is the equivalence between 1 mm of rainfall and litres per square metre?

Questions from this subtopic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

  1. 1

    What are the inputs to a drainage basin system when calculating mass balance in the water cycle?

    Model answer

    Precipitation is the primary input to a drainage basin system.

  2. 2

    What are the outputs from a drainage basin system used in mass balance calculations?

    Model answer

    Evapotranspiration, runoff, and groundwater flow are the outputs from a drainage basin system.

  3. 3

    How is mass balance calculated for a drainage basin?

    Model answer

    By calculating the difference between total inputs (precipitation) and total outputs (evapotranspiration, runoff, groundwater flow) over a given time period.

  4. 4

    How would you interpret a mass balance calculation that shows inputs are greater than outputs?

    Model answer

    The system is gaining water and storage is increasing.

  5. 5

    How would you interpret a mass balance calculation where inputs equal outputs?

    Model answer

    The system is in equilibrium, with no net change in storage.

  6. 6

    What does a positive mass balance indicate for a drainage basin?

    Model answer

    Inputs exceed outputs, resulting in an increase in storage.

Other ways to work this

The same content, four other ways.

What is inside Levo

Six ways to work the same material.

1Closed book
2Open book
3Closed book

The 3-step method, run for you

Answer cold, learn it, then prove it stuck. Levo tracks the jump between your first attempt and your last.

Water and Carbon Cycles
Hot Desert Systems and Landscapes
Coastal Systems and Landscapes
Glacial Systems and Landscapes

Cram a whole paper in one sitting

Sort every topic into what you know and what you do not, then drill only the weak ones.

China and .
IndiaAustraliaJapan

Blank Blitz makes facts automatic

Rapid timed gap-fills on the terms and numbers you need to recall without thinking.

AThe horns have less sand volume, so they move more quickly.
BSand is transported up the gentle windward slope via saltation.
CSand accumulates at the crest.

Build It gets the exam shape right

Assemble a full-mark answer from its marking points, in the order an examiner wants them.

Weathering means breakdown of rock in place.
TrueFalse

Test It catches misconceptions

Spot the fault in a statement. The traps are the mistakes students actually make.

721941163128510

Brain Breaks between sessions

Short focus games to reset attention, so the next set lands better than the last.

Every question in Water and Carbon Cycles, on a schedule.

Attempt a question from memory, write the correct version, then attempt it again. Levo records the jump between your first attempt and your last, and brings each question back on the day you are due to forget it.

Or £46 a year, about £3.83 a month. Cancel anytime.