Ogallala Aquifer

Grampy Carpenter sent us some homework so we are reporting back all that we learned.

1) What is the Ogallala Aquifer and it's significance?
- The biggest aquifer in the United States covering 8 Great Plains states and 174,000 square miles. It is part of the High Plains Aquifer.
- It is where most of the western plains states get their water and is rapidly being depleted. Many parts of the aquifer have run dry in recent years, mostly in Kansas and Texas.
- We read this article from National Geographic to learn about the impact of it's overuse. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2016…

2) What is the meaning behind the 100th Meridian?
- This line of longitude signifies the approximate line where to the west there is dry land and to the east there is more wet land.
- This also signifies where elevation changes in the US. To the West most of the elevation is above 2,000ft and to the east the elevation is below 2,000 feet. Of course, as with anything there are exceptions such as the Appalachian Mountains.Read more