| what is a water balance | the concept that the input of water is equal to the output |
| what is the rivers regime | the variability in river discharge over the course of a year |
| what is the formula for water balance | precipitation = discharge + evapotranspiration + or - changes in stores |
| what is potential evapotranspiration | this the water that could have been lost to the atmosphere via evapotranspiration if water was not the limiting factor |
| what is soil moisture deficit | when all water stores have been used up, plants will wilt or have adaptations to survive |
| what is soil moisture utilisation | when evapotranspiration is higher than precipitation and the water stores are been used up |
| what is soil moisture recharge | when precipitation is greater than ETP and the water stores are being replenished or filled back up |
| what is soil moisture surplus | precipitation > ETP and stores are already filled up |
| what is river discharge and its units | the amount of water flowing past a point per second (measured in cumecs and m^3s^-1) |
