Download The Water Cycle at Work - Pi Beta Phi Elementary School

Spheres




Atmosphere (“air sphere")
Biosphere (“life sphere")
Hydrosphere ("water sphere")
Lithosphere ("rock sphere")
Atmosphere

The envelope
of air that
surrounds the
Earth
Atmosphere



Life on Earth is supported by the
ATMOSPHERE, solar energy, and our
planet's magnetic fields.
The ATMOSPHERE absorbs energy from
the Sun, recycles water and other
chemicals, and works with the electrical
and magnetic forces to provide a
moderate climate.
The ATMOSPHERE also protects us from
high-energy radiation and the frigid
vacuum of space.
Composition of the Atmosphere



N2-78%
O2-21%
Other-1%
 Argon (Ar)
 Water (H2O)
 Carbon Dioxide
(CO2)
 Ozone (O3)
Biosphere


Includes all living
things
For example,
rainforests in
South America,
grasslands and
forests in North
America and
whales in the
ocean
Hydrosphere




Includes all of the rivers,
lakes and oceans on
Earth
Here we see the ocean
in different colors that
show the different
temperatures found on
the ocean's surface.
Water near the equator
is warm (light blues).
Water near the poles are
cold (dark purples).
Lithosphere

Includes the
ground and the
inside of the Earth
Lithosphere



The surface of the lithosphere is uneven. There
are high mountains ranges like the Rockies and
Andes (in reds), huge plains like those in Texas
and Brazil (in greens), and the deep valleys of the
ocean floor (in blues).
But the surface of Earth is only the very top of the
lithosphere.
If you look at the cut-away globe, you can see the
rest of the lithosphere with its many layers like an
onion: the very thin crust on top, the thick mantle
underneath, and the huge core of liquid iron at
the center.
Spheres in Everyday Life




Every time you breathe or fly a kite, you
are contacting the ATMOSPHERE.
When you play with your pets, you are
contacting the BIOSPHERE.
When you drink water or go swimming
you are contacting the HYDROSPHERE.
When you climb a mountain, or dig a
hole, you are contacting the
LITHOSPHERE.
The Water Cycle at Work
The Water Cycle





Water never stops moving.
Snow and rain fall to the Earth from
clouds. The rain and melted snow run
downhill into rivers and lakes.
Eventually the water flows into the ocean.
During evaporation, the water turns from
liquid into gas, and moves from oceans
and lakes into the ATMOSPHERE where it
forms clouds.
Then the cycle begins all over again.
The Water Cycle



How do these changes happen? Adding or
subtracting heat makes the cycle work. If
heat is added to ice, it melts. If heat is
added to water, it evaporates.
Evaporation turns liquid water into a gas
called water vapor.
If heat is taken away from water vapor, it
condenses. Condensation turns water
vapor into a liquid. If heat is taken away
from liquid water, it freezes to become
ice.
Another Water Cycle Diagram
The Rock Cycle
cools quickly.
The Rock Cycle



Magma cools and crystallizes to form
igneous rock.
Igneous rock undergoes weathering (or
breakdown) to form sediment. The
sediment is transported and deposited
somewhere (such as at the beach or in a
delta, or in the deep sea).
The deposited sediment undergoes
lithification (the processes that turn it into a
rock). These include cementation and
compaction.
The Rock Cycle



As the sedimentary rock is buried under more
and more sediment, heat and pressure
cause metamorphism to occur. This
transforms the sedimentary rock into a
metamorphic rock.
As the metamorphic rock is buried more
deeply (or as it is squeezed by plate tectonic
pressures), temperatures and pressures
continue to rise. If the temperature
becomes hot enough, the metamorphic rock
undergoes melting. The molten rock is called
magma.
This completes the cycle, then the cycle
begins all over again.