Sci+-+Water+Cycle


 * __The Water Cycle__**


 * __Goal__** : Understanding the water cycle will enable us to become more informed decision makers in society.


 * How is __evaporation__ an important part of the water cycle? What role does it play?**
 * **Sun heats up the water and it turns to vapor or steam. The vapor or steam rises to the atmosphere.**
 * Evaporation is when the sun heats up the water anywhere and turns it into steam or vapor (liquid to gas).
 * Earth's water is moving at all time and is always changing states (solid, liquid, and gas)
 * Warm air that contains the vapor rises up into the atmosphere.
 * The hotter water is, the quicker it will evaporate.
 * The higher the wind speed, the quicker water will evaporate.
 * The more humidity, the quicker water will evaporate.
 * 80% of the precipitation that falls is evaporated from the ocean.


 * How is __condensation__ an important part of the water cycle? What role does it play?**
 * **Water vapor cools down to form clouds in the atmosphere.**
 * Condensation is the process when steam or vapor cools down and turns back into liquid water.
 * The water and steam in the atmosphere gets cold and forms a cloud.
 * Condensation is the formation of liquid drops from water vapor.
 * When water vapor rises it cools down and turns into a liquid, that is condensation.


 * How is __precipitation__ an important part of the water cycle? What role does it play?**
 * ** Clouds release the water in the form of rain, snow, sleet and hail. **
 * Precipitation is the water released from clouds in the form of droplets. It can be cold water (rain), sleet, snow, or hail.
 * The process that happens when a form of water falls from the atmosphere (clouds) to the ground.
 * Precipitation does not fall in the same amounts throughout the world, or even within a city. The amount of precipitation that falls can change from place to place.
 * When cloud particles get too heavy to stay in the air, they drop to the ground in the form of precipitation.


 * How is runoff an important part of the water cycle? What role does it play?**
 * ** Runoff is when precipitation travels into the soil and other bodies of water. **


 * Can human activity affect __runoff__ ? Why or why not?**
 * ** We may affect runnoff because humans can build buildings and they can stop the precipitation from traveling into the soil. **
 * ** As more people inhabit the earth, people are making more urban places out of natural places. **

= = = Water Experiments =

**Water on Surfaces** - The droplets on the wax paper and aluminum foil __beaded up.__ - The droplets on the white paper __absorbed__ slowly.

- The largest drops went fastest because they had the most __mass__.
 * Water Races**

- Over 30 drops of water could fit on the face of a penny because of the characteristic of __surface tension__.
 * Water on a Penny**