The
Water Cycle
Jacob McNeely
Earth Science 4th
11/9/13
There are
many different parts of the water cycle, the three main phases would be:
Evaporation, condensation, and precipitation. Each phase of the cycle is
completely different, each dealing with different things that are important to
our planet.
The
first part of the water cycle is evaporation, in this phase of the water cycle,
water evaporates. Whenever water evaporates, it is due to the
water molecules gain heat and eventually gain kinetic energy and is released
into the atmosphere as water vapor. Heat energy has to be applied to water molecules in
order for the water to turn into a vapor, causing the molecules to accelerate
towards each other and ultimately collide together. Evapotranspiration is the
process of water being transported into the atmosphere from surfaces like soil
and plant life.
In the
condensation phase of the water cycle, water forms clouds and fog as well as
other weather formations. Ever wondered how a cloud has formed? Here’s how: clouds form whenever
rising air cools and causes the water vapor that is in the atmosphere cools and
begins to basically clump together. When there is a thick
cloud of tiny water particles near the Earth’s surface that obscures
visibility, it is known as fog. Clouds have these tiny little particles inside of them
known as condensation nuclei and that is an aerosol that acts as the initial sites
for condensation of water vapor into cloud droplets or cloud ice particles.
Precipitation
is the last phase I’m going to talk about, during precipitation water molecules
fall to the earth in many different forms. Precipitation is any form of liquid or solid
particles that fall from the atmosphere and reach the Earth’s surface. Examples
including rain, sleet, snow, hail, etc. Water isn’t stored only in just
oceans or rivers; there are other forms of water storage we don’t exactly think
about. Water storage is locations
where water is stored in the ground or other different formations such as ice
caps or other similar surfaces. After some form of precipitation hits the ground most
people just assume that the water simply disappears, however, this is in
correct. After precipitation hits the ground, it either
soaks itself into the ground, or flows through rocks back into the nearest body
of water.
All in all,
that’s the water cycle put as simple as was possible. If you don’t understand
how evaporation, condensation, and precipitation work after you’ve read this,
too bad, I’m not the person who came up with these theories.
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