EVAPORATION
Evaporation is the process in which water becomes a gas or vapour from its liquid form. Evaporation is the primary passage that water moves from the liquid state back into the water cycle as atmospheric water vapour. Heat, energy, is absolutely necessary for this stage of the water cycle as it is used to break the bonds that hold water molecules together, which is why water easily evaporates at a lower temperature than most other materials.
CONDENSATION
Condensation is the process by which water vapour in the air is changed once again into liquid water. Condensation is crucial to the water cycle because it is the part responsible for the formation of clouds, which form precipitation and is the most common route for water to return to the Earths surface within the water cycle. Condensation is the opposite of evaporation.
PRECIPITATION
Precipitation is just a fancy word for rain. The clouds you see floating overhead hold water vapour and cloud droplets, which are small drops of condensed water. These droplets are extremely small; so much so that they are too small to fall as precipitation, but they are large enough to form visible clouds. Water is continually evaporating and condensing in the sky.
INFILTRATION
A portion of the water that falls as rain and snow ‘infiltrates’ into the soil and rock below ground level. How much water infiltrates depends massively on a wide variety of factors. Infiltration of precipitation falling on the ice cap of Greenland might be very small, whereas a place with lots of streams and caves might have a larger amount, therefore proving that a stream can act as a direct funnel right into groundwater.
RUNOFF
Runoff can be described as the part of the water cycle that flows over land as surface water instead of being absorbed into the ground or evaporating. Runoff is that part of the precipitation, snow melt, or irrigation water that appears in rivers, drains or sewers. A variety of factors can affect runoff; some of those include the amount of rainfall, the vegetation and the slope.
PICTURES OF MY WATER CYCLE MODEL
MY WATER CYCLE
For my water cycle project, I decided to create a 3D working model that depicts the water cycle. My model shows the vital steps in the water (hydrological) cycle, including evaporation, condensation, precipitation and collection. My working model used a fish tank pump and some 6 mm flexible hose to transport the water around the model. The water is transported all around the model until it reaches a small tub with holes drilled out of the bottom, which acts as the precipitation. The water falls through the holes and gathers at the bottom again, proving that the water cycle is continuous.
A FUN AND EASY WAY TO REMEMBER THE WATER CYCLE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWb4KlM2vts This song is a fun, catchy and easy way to remember the different stages of the water cycle.