The water cycle is a really cool way to see how water changes! It shows us how water goes from being a solid, to a liquid, and then to a gas. Let's break it down:
Evaporation: When the sun shines on water in rivers, lakes, or oceans, it heats it up. This makes the water turn into water vapor, which is a gas. This process is called evaporation. Have you ever noticed a puddle on a sunny day getting smaller? That’s evaporation!
Condensation: As the water vapor rises into the air, it cools down. When it cools, it transforms back into tiny droplets of liquid water. This process is called condensation, and it’s how clouds are formed. Think about when you have a cold glass of water and little water droplets appear on the outside. This happens because the air around it is humid – similar things happen in the sky!
Precipitation: After a while, the water droplets in the clouds get heavy and fall back to the ground. This is called precipitation, and it can come down as rain, snow, or even hail. That’s water changing back into a liquid or solid!
By learning about these steps – solid (like ice), liquid (like water), and gas (like water vapor) – we can appreciate how water is always moving around in our world!
The water cycle is a really cool way to see how water changes! It shows us how water goes from being a solid, to a liquid, and then to a gas. Let's break it down:
Evaporation: When the sun shines on water in rivers, lakes, or oceans, it heats it up. This makes the water turn into water vapor, which is a gas. This process is called evaporation. Have you ever noticed a puddle on a sunny day getting smaller? That’s evaporation!
Condensation: As the water vapor rises into the air, it cools down. When it cools, it transforms back into tiny droplets of liquid water. This process is called condensation, and it’s how clouds are formed. Think about when you have a cold glass of water and little water droplets appear on the outside. This happens because the air around it is humid – similar things happen in the sky!
Precipitation: After a while, the water droplets in the clouds get heavy and fall back to the ground. This is called precipitation, and it can come down as rain, snow, or even hail. That’s water changing back into a liquid or solid!
By learning about these steps – solid (like ice), liquid (like water), and gas (like water vapor) – we can appreciate how water is always moving around in our world!