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Elements of the water cycle
Evaporation
Evaporation is the process
by which water is converted
from its liquid form to its
vapor form. In water vapor
form, it moves into the
atmosphere (air).
Evaporation from the oceans
accounts for 80% of the
water delivered as
precipitation (rain, snow,
sleet, or hail).
Condensation
Condensation is the change of
water from its gaseous form
(water vapor) into liquid water.
Condensation generally occurs
in the atmosphere when warm
air rises, cools and looses its
capacity to hold water vapor.
As a result, excess water vapor
condenses to form cloud
droplets.
Precipitation
When cloud
particles become
too heavy to remain
suspended in the
air, they fall to the
earth as
precipitation.
Precipitation occurs
in a variety of
forms; hail, rain,
freezing rain, sleet
or snow.
Transpiration is the Transpiration
process by which
moisture is carried
through plants from
roots to small pores on
the underside of
leaves, where it
changes to vapor and
is released to the
atmosphere.
Transpiration is
essentially
evaporation of water
from plant leaves.
The saturated zone: The rock and
soil in which all the open spaces
are filled with water is called the
saturated (or saturation) zone. As
the top of the saturated zone
rises toward the surface, it
reaches a level of equilibrium
with the overlying unsaturated
zone.
The unsaturated zone: The
unsaturated zone (or zone of
aeration) is the rock and
sediment in which pore spaces
contain mostly air and some
water and therefore are not
saturated. The unsaturated zone
typically starts at the surface and
extends downward to the
saturated zone. The contact
between the saturated and
unsaturated zones is called the
water table.
Water Table
Surface Runoff
Surface runoff is water,
from rain, snowmelt, or
other sources, that
flows over the land
surface, and is a major
component of the water
cycle.
Groundwater
Groundwater is water
that exists in the pore
spaces and fractures in
rock and sediment
beneath the Earth's
surface. It originates as
rainfall or snow, and then
moves through the soil
into the groundwater
system, where it
eventually makes its way
back to surface streams,
lakes, or oceans.