52
The energy provided by the sun is the most significant external factor impacting
the system, although the earth’s gravitation force also operates as an external force.
There are structural relationships between the water contained in oceans, ice,
groundwater, soils, lakes, atmosphere, swamps, rivers, and biology.
Internal interactions between these parts of the system are mediated by the laws
of nature governing the hydrosphere and further mediated through the climate system, oceans, the biosphere (the living parts of the earth systems), and the cryosphere (the frozen water part of the Earth system) and manifest them as more
straightforward processes such as evaporation, condensation, precipitation, transpiration, sublimation, surface and subsurface flows, percolation, and plant uptake.
Human actions include the creation of reservoirs, irrigation, and multiple types
of consumption that have more or less impact on the larger natural process in different locations. The water cycle changes dynamically on many time scales from hours
(storm intensity) to years (seasonal changes) to hundreds of thousands of years
(ice age cycles).
Modeling the earth’s water cycle with Global Hydrological Models (GHMs) is a
major scientific discipline in its own right and is a significant part of efforts to
understand the climate system through Global Circulation Models (GCMs) or the
earth system as a whole through “Earth System Models” (ESMs). In this book, we
will be looking at FEW systems integrations primarily at smaller scales.
The famous image of the entire earth taken from the Apollo 17 spacecraft in 1972
(page 1) has given rise to the view of the earth as the “water planet,” the “blue
planet,” and the “blue marble.” However, from a human perspective, it is 1% of the
planet’s water that is fresh and accessible, which is most important. Thus, water
systems at sub-planetary scales tend to focus on the freshwater systems that can
meet human needs, their capture/extraction, distribution, pretreatment, use or consumption, post-use treatment, and disposal. Examples of traditionally studied water
systems at various scales include the following:
• Hydroponic systems where water acts as a medium for transporting nutrients to
plants.
• Water facilities such as pre- and post-use treatment facilities, hydroelectric power
plants, thermoelectric power plant cooling, and a wide variety of industrial facilities in which water flows have a critical function.
• Irrigation systems which can range from a single field to a farm to an entire agricultural region.
• Human communities including cities and metro regions (see Sect. 18.2) which
have defined boundaries for water collection, distribution, use, and disposal.
• Groundwater systems which drive the evolution of aquifers or the movement of
pollutants.
• Aquatic ecosystems where water quality, quantity, and movement impact an
essential natural resource.
• Watersheds, water basins, drainage basins, and catchment areas where the water
flows in a given area go to a common outlet such as a reservoir or a bay.
P. Saundry and B. L. Ruddell
The energy provided by the sun is the most significant external factor impacting
the system, although the earth’s gravitation force also operates as an external force.
There are structural relationships between the water contained in oceans, ice,
groundwater, soils, lakes, atmosphere, swamps, rivers, and biology.
Internal interactions between these parts of the system are mediated by the laws
of nature governing the hydrosphere and further mediated through the climate system, oceans, the biosphere (the living parts of the earth systems), and the cryosphere (the frozen water part of the Earth system) and manifest them as more
straightforward processes such as evaporation, condensation, precipitation, transpiration, sublimation, surface and subsurface flows, percolation, and plant uptake.
Human actions include the creation of reservoirs, irrigation, and multiple types
of consumption that have more or less impact on the larger natural process in different locations. The water cycle changes dynamically on many time scales from hours
(storm intensity) to years (seasonal changes) to hundreds of thousands of years
(ice age cycles).
Modeling the earth’s water cycle with Global Hydrological Models (GHMs) is a
major scientific discipline in its own right and is a significant part of efforts to
understand the climate system through Global Circulation Models (GCMs) or the
earth system as a whole through “Earth System Models” (ESMs). In this book, we
will be looking at FEW systems integrations primarily at smaller scales.
The famous image of the entire earth taken from the Apollo 17 spacecraft in 1972
(page 1) has given rise to the view of the earth as the “water planet,” the “blue
planet,” and the “blue marble.” However, from a human perspective, it is 1% of the
planet’s water that is fresh and accessible, which is most important. Thus, water
systems at sub-planetary scales tend to focus on the freshwater systems that can
meet human needs, their capture/extraction, distribution, pretreatment, use or consumption, post-use treatment, and disposal. Examples of traditionally studied water
systems at various scales include the following:
• Hydroponic systems where water acts as a medium for transporting nutrients to
plants.
• Water facilities such as pre- and post-use treatment facilities, hydroelectric power
plants, thermoelectric power plant cooling, and a wide variety of industrial facilities in which water flows have a critical function.
• Irrigation systems which can range from a single field to a farm to an entire agricultural region.
• Human communities including cities and metro regions (see Sect. 18.2) which
have defined boundaries for water collection, distribution, use, and disposal.
• Groundwater systems which drive the evolution of aquifers or the movement of
pollutants.
• Aquatic ecosystems where water quality, quantity, and movement impact an
essential natural resource.
• Watersheds, water basins, drainage basins, and catchment areas where the water
flows in a given area go to a common outlet such as a reservoir or a bay.
P. Saundry and B. L. Ruddell