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Glossary 491heating degree days – a measurement that reflects the amount of energy needed to heata home or structure. With a baseline of 65°F, heating degree days are the sum of the temperaturedifferences of the daily mean temperature subtracted from 65°F, for all dayswhen the mean temperature is less than 65°F. (See also cooling degree days)host – an organism that harbors another organism in or on itselfHueco Bolson – a groundwater basin in the El Paso/Ciudad Juarez region (shared amongNew Mexico and Texas in the United States, and Chihuahua in Mexico)hydroclimatology – refers to key physical processes that connect climate and hydrology;a broad definition suggests the study of moisture in the atmosphere and waterin and on the surface of the earth; thus, hydroclimatology includes processes such astransfers of moisture between the atmosphere and the surface, the connections betweenclimate and soil moisture, and studies of the influence of climate upon waterhydrograph – a chart that shows the rate of change of a hydrologic variable throughtime, such as rate of flow in a stream past a particular location or a change in the temperatureor pH of water through timehydrologic drought – extended period of low water supply; below-normal streamflow,lake, and groundwater levels, due to a decline or deficit in precipitationhydrologic parameters – examples are precipitation, snowpack, and temperaturehydrology – the study of the properties of water in all its forms—liquid, solid, and gas—especially its movement and distribution on and below the earth’s surface and in theatmospherehypoxia, hypoxic events – the occurrence of dangerously low oxygen levels that canlead to widespread die-offs of fish or other organismsIPCC – (from Bureau of Reclamation Climate Technical Work Group—Appendix U):“The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) established by World MeteorologicalOrganization (WMO) and United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP)provides an assessment of the state of knowledge on climate change based on peerreviewedand published scientific/technical literature in regular time intervals.”impervious – resistant to penetration by water or plant rootsinfiltration – the flow of water through the ground surface that percolates through soiland layers of geologic material in a generally downward directioninformal housing – unplanned residential areas where a group of housing units hasbeen constructed on land to which the occupants have no legal claim, or where housingis not in compliance with current planning and building regulations. Many otherterms and definitions have also been devised for informal human housing, for example:unplanned settlements, squatter settlements, marginal settlements, and non-permanentstructures.in-situ – in the natural environment; a term that refers to data and measurements takenin the field as opposed to in a laboratoryinstrumental record – observed data using a variety of weather instruments, such asthermometers or rain gauges