vadose water

Vadose water, also known as gravitational water, is groundwater that is suspended or circulating above the water table. This water is found in the vadose zone, which is the region of aeration above the water table. The thickness of the vadose zone can vary significantly, from being absent to hundreds of feet, depending on the environment and the type of earth material present.12

Hydrology is the study of the water cycle from precipitation reaching the land surface to its eventual loss back to the atmosphere or flow to the sea. It primarily focuses on waters near the land surface and includes specialized disciplines like groundwater hydrology, which deals with subsurface water in the saturated zone, and soil water physics, which studies subsurface water in the unsaturated zone. Water percolates from the soil moisture zone through the unsaturated (vadose) zone to the water table.34