Surface-water hydrology is a field that encompasses all surface waters of the globe (overland flows, rivers, lakes, wetlands, estuaries, oceans, etc.). This is a subset of the hydrologic cycle that does not include atmospheric, and ground waters. Surface-water hydrology relates the dynamics of flow in surface-water systems (rivers, canals, streams, lakes, ponds, wetlands, marshes, arroyos, oceans, etc.). This includes the field measurement of flow (discharge); the statistical variability at each setting; floods; drought susceptibility and the development of the levels of risk; and the fluid mechanics of surface waters.
Definition source: Regional Aquatics Monitoring Program
