Perhaps the most memorable water shot from the movie is that of the Pandoran waterfall as seen below.
This waterfall is a prime example of overland flow. The falls are fed by a mountain top lake in an area of high precipitation. The amount of water present in the fall has exceeded the stone mountain side's infiltration capacity, causing the mass amount of water to continue down the falls, mainly because the stone is non porous. The water runoff is also responsible for shaping the falls due to the process of weathering. Whether (see what i did there) it be due to the water weathering away the weaker material, or the water transporting smaller rocks causing them to break down.
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A scene from the movie showing the grand scale of the waterfall
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| here is another view of a Pandoran waterfall in the background, this image is also the background to my blog |
This waterfall, as well as the others, are the largest contributor to feeding the streams seen in the movie. Pandora is mainly a tropical environment, however due to the atmospheric composition the highest amount of precipitation occurs in higher altitudes. This is why most of the water at lower elevations comes from mountain top runoff.
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| Here is another scene of a waterfall feeding a tributary. Notice the lush vegitation in the flood plane, which suggests a long perioid of time since a large flood. |
The streams most likely begain as smaller rills, which then spread into gulleys. After time, the water has reached the soil's infiltration capacity which allows for the presence of ground and surface water. As part of the water cycle, all the streams eventually lead to rivers, and then to Pandora's oceans where the process begins again.
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| On an end note, According to MTV Movie News, the planned sequal to Avatar will be focused on Pandora's Oceans so that will be very exciting. http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1637529/avatar-sequel-heads-underwater-heres-what-we-know-about-pandoras-oceans.jhtml |
*All photo credits to http://james-camerons-avatar.wikia.com/wiki/Pandora
I think your exploration of the hydrologic cycle is well-done. The pictures you used, particularly the image of the flood plain, really work to underscore what you are saying. I also enjoyed your description of water weathering, and how that plays into the formation of waterfalls. I am curious, though, why you found it surprising that Pandora has a higher water/land ratio than Earth.
ReplyDeleteSusanna Diller
Mike,
ReplyDeleteComing from someone who is doing an imaginary landscape as well, I can tell you put a lot of time into creating your blog, in detail, from your previous posts. Overall the way you show Pandora's water cycle and compare it to Earth is awesome. Also, you go into showing how Pandora's high elevation leads to runoff which results in weathering, I wouldn't have even notice this during the movie, so thanks for enlightening me.
Good Job!
Miles