2. What is the Water Cycle? It’s a continuous movement of water from ocean to the air and then to land and it is a pattern over and over again. There are five different phases of the water cycle: Condensation, Precipitation, Runoff, Evaporation, and Infiltration. http://chalk.richmond.edu/education/projects/webunits/water/watercycle.html

3. Interesting Facts about Water There have been over 36,000 dams have been built to provide power, irrigation, drinking water, and control floods. 1.2 billion people have a risk drinking contaminated water. The tooth enamel is the driest part in our body, which only has 2% of water. 83% of water in our body is in our blood.

4. Inorganic and Organic Reservoirs Some have combined with carbon dioxide during photosynthesis. Water is combined with hydrogen and oxygen. Only 0.024% of the earth’s vast water supply is available to us as liquid freshwater. The rest too salty for us to drink.( 4% Sodium chloride in sea water) Fresh water has nitrates and phosphates

5. Condensation Condensation is the process where water vapor is cooled and then changes into a gas then a liquid. http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/thumb_114/11694249573Rz3ae.jpg

6. Precipitation Precipitation is the form in which water returns to the earth in the form of rain, snow, sleet, or hail. Precipitation also occurs when the condensed water droplets that form clouds and then it becomes to heavy to remain in the air. As the numbers of cloud droplets increases, the droplets come together for each other to form rain drops. It takes 1 million cloud droplets to create just one rain drop!! http://www.kidsgeo.com/images/precipitation.jpg

7. Runoff Water has to return to the Earth as precipitation. For example; the water flows down hills into streams, ponds, lakes, and rivers. Small Streams→ Larger Streams→ Rivers→ Ocean Surface Runoff is the most important, because water returns to oceans then evaporation occurs. http://www.ehponline.org/docs/2001/109-12/runoff.jpg

8. Evaporation It’s the process where a liquid, changes from its liquid state to a gaseous state. For example, the water in a pot that is left on a table will eventually evaporate. Water is warmed by the sun and which causes evaporation http://library.thinkquest.org/C0126220/environment/photo/evaporation1.jpg

9. Infiltration Important process where rain water soaks into the ground. Water is then return to the surface at spring or low spots downhill. Water than stays in the ground is called groundwater. Water infiltrates through soil and rock layers and the water is filtered out and that process helps clean out the water

10. Human Impact on Water Cycle Water supply on earth is constant. The fundamental supply is being changed by man. Examples are rising living standards, population increases, and industrial and economic growth.. Water is used by household and farms have also increased in number. People demand clean water and want it at reasonable costs. These activities can cause inequity in the hydrologic equation

11. Human Impact cont….. Positive Supply electricity to more homes More jobs for people More money from recreational activities; boating and fishing Negative Floods from draining wetlands because more land is need for homes/farming We also cover land with roads, buildings, and parking lots, that eliminates the land’s ability to absorb water and increasing flooding.

12. Cycle is Natural Renewal of Water Quality Evaporation and precipitation act as natural distillation that purifies water Water flowing above ground and underground in aquifers Is purified by chemical and biological processes – mostly by action of decomposer bacteria