Due to the significant difference in density, buoyancy drives humid air higher. The water molecule HĢO has smaller molecular mass than the major components of the atmosphere, nitrogen ( NĢ) and hence is less dense. Evapotranspiration is water transpired from plants and evaporated from the soil. Some ice and snow sublimates directly into water vapor. Water evaporates as water vapor into the air. This energy heats water in the ocean and seas. The water cycle is powered from the energy emitted by the sun. The water cycle is also essential for the maintenance of most life and ecosystems on the planet.įurther information: Water distribution on Earth It is also involved in reshaping the geological features of the Earth, through processes including erosion and sedimentation. The flow of liquid water and ice transports minerals across the globe. The evaporative phase of the cycle purifies water which then replenishes the land with freshwater. When it condenses, it releases energy and warms the environment. When water evaporates, it takes up energy from its surroundings and cools the environment. The water cycle involves the exchange of energy, which leads to temperature changes. The ocean plays a key role in the water cycle as it is the source of 86% of global evaporation. In doing so, the water goes through different forms: liquid, solid ( ice) and vapor. The water moves from one reservoir to another, such as from river to ocean, or from the ocean to the atmosphere, by the physical processes of evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, infiltration, surface runoff, and subsurface flow. The mass of water on Earth remains fairly constant over time but the partitioning of the water into the major reservoirs of ice, fresh water, saline water (salt water) and atmospheric water is variable depending on a wide range of climatic variables. The water cycle, also known as the hydrologic cycle or the hydrological cycle, is a biogeochemical cycle that describes the continuous movement of water on, above and below the surface of the Earth. Continuous movement of water on, above and below the surface of the Earthĭiagram depicting the global water cycle.
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