Information Report The Water Cycle

The Water cycle is a process that water goes through between land, sea and atmosphere. The steps in the water cycle are evaporation, condensation, precipitation, ground-water, runoff and accumulation. The water is recycled throughout the process. The water changes state throughout the process, liquid, gas (water vapor) and solid.

Evaporation

Evaporation is when sun heats up the water in the lakes rivers and oceans and turns it into as also known as vapor. The process is invisible and changes liquid and frozen water into water vapor then it floats up into the sky. On hot days the water evaporates better than on cloudy winter days. When warm air with lots of water vapor in it moves into colder temperatures, it causes the water vapor to condense into a liquid. Once the water turn into a gas and it floats up into the sky it forms into cloud which is called condensation.

Condensation/Precipitation

When water vapor that has gone into the sky cools it becomes clouds; it then gets pushed around the world by moving air currents and winds. Tiny droplets fall onto each other and merge making a larger droplet. When a droplet is big enough gravity will pull it down stronger than the updraft of the cloud, making the droplet fall out of the cloud onto the ground. The amount of precipitation that falls every year is different all around the world. In desserts it may only rain one inch per year while on some mountains it could rain to up to 600 inch per year. Condensation happens because of the temperature. After precipitation the water goes into the ground causing groundwater and runoff.

Runoff/Groundwater

Runoff is nothing more than water running off the land surface due to gravity. Runoff is important because it flows over the land and some goes into the ground recharging groundwater and giving water to plants. The ground stores lots of water and it exists to some degree no matter where on Earth you are. Groundwater serves oodles in nature such as keeping plants alive, filling aquifers, from which people can take water, contributing water to rivers and lakes, and finally flowing into the oceans.

The water cycle is an important process that recycles water using these 5 steps evaporation, condensation, precipitation, runoff and groundwater.