File:Groundwater_flow.svg · Wikimedia Commons · See Wikimedia Commons
aquifer
Sign in to savethumb|upright=1.8|Schematic of an aquifer showing confined zones, groundwater travel times, a spring and a [[well]]
An aquifer is an underground layer of rock or soil that holds and stores water, which can be accessed through wells or natural springs. Aquifers are important because they supply fresh water to many communities and regions around the world.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Wikidata facts
- Subclass of
- water reservoir
- Image
- Groundwater flow.svg
Show 6 more facts
- different from
- subterranean river
- topic has template
- Template:Aquifers
- Commons category
- Aquifers
- topic's main category
- Category:Aquifers
- facet of
- hydrogeology
- exact match
- purl.obolibrary.org/obo/ENVO_00012408
via Wikidata · CC0
~20 min read
Encyclopedic overview
24 sectionsContents
- Etymology
- Properties
- Depth
- Groundwater recharge
- Classification
- Saturated versus unsaturated
- Aquifers versus aquitards
- Confined versus unconfined
- Isotropic versus anisotropic
- Porous, karst, or fractured
- Porous
- Karst
- Fractured
- Undersea
- Human use of groundwater
- By country or continent
- Africa
- Australia
- Canada
- South America
- United States
- See also
- References
- External links
thumb|upright=1.8|Schematic of an aquifer showing confined zones, groundwater travel times, a spring and a [[well]]
An aquifer is an underground layer of water-bearing material consisting of permeable or fractured rock, or of unconsolidated materials (gravel, sand, or silt). Aquifers vary greatly in their characteristics. The study of water flow in aquifers and the characterization of aquifers is called hydrogeology. Related concepts include aquitard, a bed of low permeability along an aquifer, and aquiclude (or aquifuge), a solid and impermeable region underlying or overlying an aquifer, the pressure of which could lead to the formation of a confined aquifer. Aquifers can be classified as saturated versus unsaturated, aquifers versus aquitards, confined versus unconfined, isotropic versus anisotropic, and porous, karst, fractured, or transboundary.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “aquifer” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.