The Water Cycle

A) Water is recycled through the environment through the process of evaporation, transpiration, condensation and precipitation

The Water Cycle

THE SUN DRIVES THE WATER CYCLE.

A) Transpiration – when water is taken in by plants roots but then exits through their leaves

B) Evaporation is the process by which water changes from a liquid to a gas or vapor. Evaporation is the primary pathway that water moves from the liquid state back into the water cycle as atmospheric water vapor.

The Water Cycle

THE SUN DRIVES THE WATER CYCLE.

• Condensation is the process by which water vapor in the air is changed into liquid water. Condensation is crucial to the water cycle because it is responsible for the formation of clouds. ... Condensation is the opposite of evaporation

The Water Cycle

THE SUN DRIVES THE WATER CYCLE.

• Precipitation is water released from clouds in the form of rain, freezing rain, sleet, snow, or hail. It is the primary connection in the water cycle that provides for the delivery of atmospheric water to the Earth.

• Most precipitation falls as rain

The Water Cycle

THE SUN DRIVES THE WATER CYCLE.• Surface runoff is water, from rain, snowmelt, or other sources, that flows over the land

surface. Runoff that occurs on surfaces before reaching a channel is also called overland flow.

• Groundwater is a part of the water cycle. Some part of the precipitation that lands on the ground surface infiltrates into the subsurface. The part that continues downward through the soil until it reaches rock material that is saturated is groundwater recharge.

Why Study Water?

Only 3% of Earth’s water is freshwater.

Only 30% of ALL freshwater is in liquid form:

1% on the surface

29% underground

THE WATER CYCLE

GLACIERS Snow falls onto

mountains and stays a long time (10s of 1,000s of years).

When it finally melts, it provides water for streams and rivers.

THE WATER CYCLE: Surface Water

Surface water comes from precipitation and moves due to gravity.

THE WATER CYCLE: Surface Water

•Surface water runs downhill due to gravity.

•The area of land that contributes water to a river system is called a watershed.

THE WATER CYCLE: Surface Water

All of the precipitation that falls inside this area, eventually flows out this outlet into the sea.

Ground Water Zones

Ground WaterAquifer – Layer of permeable rock or sediment.

Ground WaterAquifer – Layer of permeable rock or sediment.

Aquifers provide water for wells.

THE WATER CYCLE

Oceans: where it all ends up going.

Rivers, streams and runoff carry all of the water AND EVERYTHING ELSE from the land into the oceans. When water gets into the oceans, it mixes and becomes salty.

97% of water on the earth is in the oceans.

DID YOU KNOW? About ½ of 1% of the water on earth is

groundwater

Only about 1/100 of 1% of the water on earth is in the rivers and lakes

It takes 39,090 gallons of water to make a new car, including tires

Over 17,000,000 houses use private wells for their drinking water supply

A person can live about 3 weeks without food, but can live only about 3 days without water