Water Cycle It keeps cycling back Durham Middle School

Water Cycle terms Evaporation: This is the change of water from a liquid to a gas. On average, around 47 inches is evaporated into the atmosphere from the ocean each year. Transpiration: This is the evaporation of liquid water from plants and trees into the Earth’s atmosphere. Nearly all water that enters the roots transpires into the atmosphere. Sublimation: This is the process where ice and snow (a solid) changes into a gas without moving through the liquid phase. Condensation: This is the process where water changes back into a liquid. This is when we begin to first see clouds. Transportation: This is the movement of solid, liquid and gaseous water throughout the atmosphere. Without this movement, all of the water evaporated over the ocean would not precipitate over land.

Water Cycle terms Precipitation: This is water that falls to the earth. Most precipitation falls as rain but includes snow, sleet, drizzle and hail. On average, about 39 inches of rain, snow and sleet fall each year around the world. Deposition: This is the reverse of stage 3. Water vapor (a gas) changes into ice (a solid) without going through the liquid phase. This is most often seen on clear and cold nights when frost forms on the ground. Infiltration: This is the movement of water into the ground from the surface. Percolation is movement of water past the soil going deep into the groundwater. Surface flow : This is the river, lake, and stream transport of water to the oceans. The water may return to the surface in springs or eventually seep into the oceans. Plant uptake: This is water taken from the groundwater flow and soil moisture. Only 1% of water that a plant draws up is used by the plant. The remaining 99% is passed back into the atmosphere.

Water Cycle: The continuous movement of water form the ocean to the atmosphere to the land and back to the ocean. Water Cycle

River systems Tributary- a stream that flows into a larger stream Watershed- The area of land that is drained by a water system Delta- a fan shaped mass of material deposited at the mouth of a stream. Load- that mass of material that is carried by a stream or river

Streams and river deposits Alluvial fans- Fan shaped delta deposits that unlike deltas, form on dry land. The slope of the land decreases sharply Flood plains- An area along a river that forms from sediments deposited when the river overflows its banks

Underground Water Zone of saturation- where rain water collects underground- this is where the spaces between the rock particles are filled with water. Water table- the upper surface of underground water- it’s the upper boundary of the zone of saturation. Aquifer- the body of rock or sediment that stores groundwater and allows the flow of groundwater. Aquifer can be described by its ability to hold water and its ability to allow water to pass freely though it.

Underground Water Porosity- The percentage of the total volume of a rock or sediment that consist of open spaces. Its how much space the aquifer has to hold water. Permeability- The ability of a rock or sediment to let fluids pass through its open spaces or pores.