Surface Water Vocabulary
Aquifer: Geologic formations of soil, sand, and rock that store water. In Mississippi, they are typically made of sands and gravels.
Confined Aquifer: A confined aquifer is like a big underground water balloon trapped between two layers of rock that water can’t get through. Because it’s squeezed tightly, the water inside is under pressure. If you poke a hole in it by digging a well, the water will shoot up higher than where the water is stored, just like when you poke a hole in a balloon filled with air.
Groundwater: Water that is found underground in cracks and spaces in soil, sand, and rock.
Recharge Zone: The area where rain enters cracks and spaces in the soil, sand, and rock on the land’s surface to begin its movement into an aquifer.
Unconfined Aquifer: Also known as a water table aquifer, this is like a big underground pool of water. The top of this pool is at the same pressure as the air around us. Because it’s close to the ground, the water level can go up or down depending on the weather. When it rains, the water level goes up, and when it’s dry, the water level can go down.
Watershed: An area of land where all the water that falls as precipitation drains into a body of water, such as a river, lake, or ocean. These vary in size, from small areas draining into a local pond to vast regions feeding into major rivers like the Mississippi River.
Geology Vocabulary
Alluvium: The loose soil, land, and other materials that are carried by rivers and deposited along their banks or in riverbeds.
Field Mapping: The process of studying and recording features of a specific area of land using maps to document the types of rock, soil, and other features in an area.
Fossil: The remains or impression of a plant, animal, or other organism that lived millions of years ago that have been preserved. These can be bones, shells, leaves, or even traces like footprints, and they help scientists learn more about the history of life on earth.
Geological Epoch: A division of time in Earth’s history that is part of a larger unit called a geological period. These are used to describe specific time frames during which significant events like changes in climate, major shifts in the Earth’s surface, or the evolution and extinction of life forms, occurred.
Geology: The study of the Earth, including its structure, materials, and the processes that have shaped it over time.
Invertebrates: Animals that do not have a backbone. This is the most diverse group of animals on Earth, making up more than 95% of all animal species.
Mosasaur: A large extinct marine reptile that lived around 70-66 million years ago, during the time of the dinosaurs. These reptiles could grow up to 50 feet long and lived in the oceans where they hunted fish and other marine life.
