The Water Cycle

Processes in the Water Cycle The water cycle is made up of 5 processes Evaporation/transpiration- water vapor entering the atmosphere (from large bodies or water or plants Condensation- when air cools down, it can’t hold all the moisture so it forms liquid drops on surfaces Precipitation- when water droplets get too large and fall out of clouds back to the Earth Runoff- water that flows back to the oceans over the land

The Water Cycle

Where Freshwater is Found Atmosphere (water vapor) Streams/rivers Ponds/lakes Groundwater Glaciers and icebergs

Groundwater Makes up 25% of freshwater Found underground If water fills all the spaces in the rock-saturated zone Permeable-water can pass easily through spaces in rocks Impermeable-water cannot pass through the rocks spaces Acquifer- a permeable layer of rock that is saturated with water

Weathering and Erosion Erosion-the process that wears down and carries away rock and soil Weathering-process where rocks are chemically altered or physically broken down into fragments

Erosion Ways that erosion can take place Gravity Movement of streams Groundwater Glaciers Wind Waves Cliff eroded Glacier erosion feature

Gravity’s effect Groundwater eroding land Wind erosion Waves eroding base Of cliff

Types of Weathering -Mechanical Mechanical weathering- physically breaking down rocks through Frost wedging- ice expands and cracks rocks Abrasion- when rocks scrape or grind against each other Growth of plant roots- gets in between rocks and cracks them

Water gets into the spaces in a rock, expands while it freezes and cuts through a rock Wind eroding a hole through a structure

Types of Weathering -Chemical Chemical weathering-chemical reactions dissolve the minerals in a rock or change them into new minerals Water is the main agent of chemical weathering

Chemical eroding of ancient buildings