Knowra Drainage basin Drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where precipitation and streams flow toward a shared outlet, such as a river, lake, or ocean. Its boundary follows elevated divides that separate it from neighboring basins.
Watershed divide : A ridge or other elevated boundary separating neighboring drainage basins. It marks where runoff stops flowing toward this basin and begins flowing toward another.
Runoff : Water that flows over land or through shallow subsurface pathways toward streams and other water bodies. It transfers precipitation from slopes into the basin's channel network.
Flood forecasting : The prediction of future flood conditions using observations, models, and weather information. Rainfall and stream data across a basin help estimate the timing and size of outlet flows.
Amazon Basin : The vast drainage area whose rivers feed the Amazon River and its tributaries in South America. Its scale and dense river network illustrate a continental drainage basin.
Drainage pattern : The arrangement of stream channels across a landscape, shaped by relief, geology, and structure. A basin contains a drainage pattern, but the pattern describes channel geometry rather than its contributing area.
River network : A connected system of rivers and streams that conveys water through a landscape. Its tributaries gather runoff from across the basin and carry it toward the outlet.
Infiltration : The process by which water enters soil from the ground surface. It reduces or delays surface flow by moving water into the basin's soils.
Water budget : An accounting of water entering, leaving, and being stored within a defined system over time. The basin provides a natural area for comparing precipitation, outflow, and storage changes.
Mississippi River Basin : The North American drainage area that sends water through the Mississippi River system to the Gulf of Mexico. Its tributaries unite runoff from a large, diverse region at one outlet.
Dendritic drainage pattern : A branching stream arrangement resembling a tree, commonly formed on relatively uniform rock or sediment. It is one channel configuration that may develop inside a drainage basin.
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