Watershed Visualization: Verde River - SAHRA Educational Modules

Come fly through the Verde River watershed! SAHRA has developed a 3-D visualization of the Verde watershed under a new NSF Geosciences Education Program grant. The watershed, located northeast of Phoenix, is the first focus area for a series of visualizations that are being developed as an educational tool for grade 8-12 classrooms.

Module 1: Verde Flythrough (4:20 min)

A computer fly through of the Verde River valley is intended to orientate the student to the general landforms and landcovers that make up the watershed.

Module 2: Watersheds (6:20 min)

Watersheds are all around us. This segment explores prior knowledge of watersheds by examining the Amazon and Mississippi watershed before focusing in on the spatial relationships of basins in the Lower Colorado and Verde sub-watershed.

Module 3: Water Cycle (8:10 min)

Watersheds and the water cycle are tightly linked. Watersheds help divide precipitation between recharge and runoff. This segment illustrates how storms in the southwest follow two distinctive seasonal trends that result in higher precipitation in the mountains.

Module 4: Runoff & Recharge (13:20)

Aquifer recharge begins in the mountains and can take thousands of years. The interaction of soils, plants, and topography determines the rate of valley recharge. Much of the water in our streams is connected to shallow aquifers and is affected by nearby pumping.

Please visit the SAHRA Watershed Visualization: Verde River website for more information.