...a pattern of steps that move water throughout the Earth.
-this cycle helps to maintain life on Earth.
-DRIVEN BY THE SUN

​

​The water cycle is...

​Water goes up in the form of gas.

​​Evaporation

​Water starts to change into liquid form and creates clouds.

Condensation

Water falls from the sky in liquid (and sometimes solid) form.

​​Precipitation

​Water drains down sloped areas toward sea level.

Runoff

​Water found on the surface, such as in oceans, is heated by the sun and turns from a liquid into a gas through the process of EVAPORATION.

Evaporation

​As water evaporates into the atmosphere, it begins to CONDENSE around dust and other small particles forming clouds.

Condensation

​As the clouds get to saturated, the excess water gets heavy enough to fall to the ground through PRECIPITATION.

Precipitation

​Water within plant life is evaporated.
-"plant sweat"

​​Transpiration

​Water flows downward into pockets of air into soil.
-forms the "zone of saturation"

Infiltration

Collection

Water is COLLECTED through both runoff and infiltration . RUNOFF is surface water flowing towards the oceans. INFILTRATION is water that is absorbed into the ground filling aquafers and becoming ground water.

Plants move water through capillary action pulling water from the ground to the surface and pulled into the atmosphere through TRANSPIRATION.

Transpiration

​When we add the loss of water from water bodies and the loss of water from plants, we call that evotranspiration.

​