What is groundwater?

Groundwater is like water that lives underground and takes a secret hideout.

Imagine you have a big sponge, and you pour water on top of it. The water soaks through the sponge and hides inside it. That’s kind of what happens with groundwater, it’s water that soaks into the ground and stays hidden in rock or soil, like a secret hideout.

Groundwater is stored in spaces between rocks or soil particles, just like water can be held in the sponge. These spaces are called aquifers, think of them as underground lakes that aren’t always visible from above.

Sometimes, when it rains or snows, more water soaks into the ground and joins the groundwater. And sometimes, people dig wells to get this hidden water out, just like digging a hole in the sponge to let the water come up again.

Groundwater can even flow slowly underground, like a sneaky stream that you can’t see, it might come out as a spring or help fill up rivers and lakes. It’s always there, ready to be found!