Spring (hydrology)
terrestrial water source
A spring is a natural exit point at which groundwater emerges from an aquifer and flows across the ground surface as surface water. It is a component of the hydrosphere, as well as a part of the water cycle. Springs have long been important for humans as a source of fresh water, especially in arid regions which have relatively little annual rainfall.
Springs are driven out onto the surface by various natural forces, such as gravity and hydrostatic pressure. A spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater is known as a hot spring. The yield of spring water varies widely from a volumetric flow rate of nearly zero to more than 14,000 litres per second (490 cu ft/s) for the biggest springs.
Formation
Springs are formed when groundwater flows onto the surface. This typically happens when the water table reaches above the surface level, or if the terrain depresses sharply. Springs may also be formed as a result of karst topography, aquifers or volcanic activity. Springs have also been observed on the ocean floor, spewing warmer, low-salinity water directly into the ocean.
“Spring (hydrology)” enters the record as terrestrial water source. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Spring, hydrology and terrestrial can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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This entry incorporates text from “Spring (hydrology)” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.