WATER CYCLE

INTRODUCTION
●Where does all the Earth's water come from? Primordial
Earth was an incandescent globe made of magma, but all
magmas contain water. Water set free by magma began to cool
down the Earth's atmosphere, until it could stay on the surface
as a liquid. Volcanic activity kept and still keeps introducing
water in the atmosphere, thus increasing the surface- and
groundwater volume of the Earth.
WHAT IS THE WATER CYCLE?
Water cycle, also called hydrologic cycle,
involves the continuous circulation of water
in the Earth-atmosphere system. Of the
many processes involved in the water cycle,
the most important are evaporation,
transpiration, condensation, precipitation,
and runoff. Although the total amount of
water within the cycle remains essentially
constant, its distribution among the various
processes is continually changing.
 IMMPORTANCE OF THE WATER CYCLE
o Water is necessary for all living things as humans
need water to drink and water the plants that gives
us food

o Water is in the atmosphere in the form of clouds

which play a vital role in the climate

o Water in the ocean helps to sustain life on earth.

The hydrological cycle
WHERE DOES THE EARTH’S WATER COME FROM?
Stages in the water
cycle
 EVAPORATION
This is when water from the varying
reservoirs is converted from the liquid form
to the gaseous form. It occurs in the
presence of a great amount of energy from
the sun which transfers into the heat
required for the conversion. Places with
conditions such as brisk air flow, high
temperatures and high surface area of water
is where evaporation occurs the most. Other
conditions such as humidity, ground level, air
temperature, solar radiation, and altitude
affect the rate of evaporation.
 TRANSPIRATION
This is the process where water is released as water
vapor from vegetation and the soil. It primarily
occurs in the leaves of varying vegetation and
comprises of 10% of atmospheric water.
Transpiration is similar to evaporation as it is also
affected by the sun. The sunlight causes small pores
in the leaves, stomata, to open where the water
passes through and is released into the air as the
vapour. Air temperature, availability of water to
plants and wind speed are factors which affect the
rate in which transpiration occurs.
Also, there is the process of Evapotranspiration,
which the combination of evaporation and
transpiration. It refers to all conversions of water into
the gaseous form and accounts for all movement of
water into the atmosphere.
 condensation

This is where water in the gaseous state is

converted to the liquid state. This process is
specifically influenced by air pressure and
the sun and can occur at great heights or at
ground level. On the ground, condensation
can be in the form of mist or fog. When
water vapour cools, it reaches a temperature
when the air becomes saturated, the
dew-point. At this point, water droplets and
clouds are formed.
 percipitation

It is the process by which condensed water vapour

from the atmosphere falls to the land and the
oceans or reservoirs. Precipitation occurs when
there is saturation of water vapour either by
either decreased air temperature or further water
vapour saturation. These two occurrences add to
the moisture in the air which heighten the
chances of precipitation to happen. The process
can be in the form of rain, snow, sleet, hail, ice
pellets or graupel.
 INTERCEPTION
This is where plants temporarily interrupt
precipitation from reaching the ground or
the oceans by storing the moisture in the
surface of their leaves. Different
vegetations store varying amounts of the
water. Also, buildings act as an intercepting
agent via roofs and guttering systems along
with underground pipes.
 THROUGHFALL
A term to refer to the precipitation which has
reached to the surface of the ground directly
from the interception of vegetation.

STEMFLOW

A term which refers to water which flows

from the surface of the stems of
vegetation to the ground.
 Channel Flow
Is simply the movement of water in a river channel.

Channel storage
Is defined as the water held in a river or stream
channel.
RIVER DISCHARGE
This the volume of water which is
flowing through a river.
 SURFACE RUNOFF
This refers to the flow of water from
precipitation overland without seeping into
the soil. It occurs when there is an excessive
volume of water or when the soil cannot
absorb any more water. The runoff ultimately
flows into various bodies which are close by
and is faster if the gradient of the land is
greater. This water flow can be contaminated
before reaching these bodies by chemicals,
and other materials.
 INFILTRATION
This is the absorption of water into the soil.
Primarily this affected by the type of soil
however, there are other factors such as the
relief of land and the amount and type of
vegetation.
 THROUGHFLOW
It is the movement of water through the soil to the
reservoirs under the force of gravity. This can
be fast or slow depending on the type of soil
and their field capacity and spore spaces. The
higher they are, the slower the rate. Animals
such as moles and earthworms create channels
that allow the easy flow of the water.
 INTERFLOW
Refers to the flow of water that has infiltrated the soil
surface and is above the groundwater level to be
discharged into a water body.

PERCOLATION
This is the downward movement of water into
porous or permeable rock or rock fragments.
These rocks like limestone and sandstone lead
to the storage of groundwater in the saturation
zone. The percolation rate is typically slow
and is affected by the fragments which are
present as well as the permeability of the rock.
 WATER TABLE
The area which is above the underground surface
that is always saturated with water, the saturation
zone. It is the area in between the zone of
aeration and the saturation zone.

Groundwater storage
It is the retention or storage of water in the
saturation zone.
 GROUNDWATER Flow
This is where gravity encourages the flow of water through
porous rock which is underground. The tendency for
water to be trapped within these deep layers of the earth
is very high which is why this process is usually very
slow.

BASE FLOW
Refers to the water flowing into the channel for long
period of time after being delayed. It is part of stream
or channel flow and is not associated with run off.
THIS IS THE END OF THE PRESENTATION

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