What is the Aeration Zone?

The Earth’s surface is marked by the presence of vegetation as well as the accumulated debris of vegetations and animals. Beneath this, there are several layers of soils, which are primarily made of mineral grains. This is also known as mineral soil. The water table has mineral soil above and below it. The upper layer is called aeration or vadose zone while the lower layer is called the saturation or phreatic zone.
So, the zone between earth’s surface and the water table is known as Aeration Zone. It is the portion of the lithosphere in which the functional interstices of permeable rock or earth are not filled with water under hydrostatic pressure or not held by capillarity. The aeration zone stores the precipitation water and then releases it gradually.