Streams and drainage systems
Streams
A stream is a body of water that carries rock particles and dissolved ions and flows down slope along a clearly defined path, called a channel. Thus streams may vary in width from a few centimeters to several kilometers. Streams are important for several reasons:
- Streams carry most of the water that goes from the land to the sea, and thus are an important part of the water cycle.
- Streams carry billions of tons of sediment to lower elevations, and thus are one of the main transporting mediums in the production of sedimentary rocks.
- Streams carry dissolved ions, the products of chemical weathering, into the oceans and thus make the sea salty. Streams are a major part of the erosional process, working in conjunction with weathering and mass wasting. Much of the surface landscape is controlled by stream erosion, evident to anyone looking out of an airplane window.
- Streams are a major source of water and transportation for the world's human population. Most population centers are located next to streams.
