Once the water is gone, the sidewalk begins to absorb solar radiation and heat up. The incoming solar radiation is being used to drive the process of evaporation. For example, think of how a puddle, following a rainstorm, keeps a sidewalk cool until it is completely dried by the sunshine. Through the process of latent heating, energy is transferred into the atmosphere when the water vapor condenses during the formation of clouds. The process of evaporation absorbs tremendous amounts of incoming solar energy. As this occurs, liquid water absorbs energy, causing it to evaporate and form water vapor. of Earth's atmosphere occurs as energy, primarily from the sun, causes liquid water to transform to another phase. This same energy is released from the substance when the change of state is reversed (gas to liquid, or liquid to solid). Latent heating Latent heating: the energy required to change a substance to a higher state of matter (solid to liquid, or liquid to gas). ![]() ![]() Supports HTML5 video Courtesy of NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Source: NASAĬlick Water Cycle Animation to view the animation in a new window.Īs discussed earlier, the water cycle not only redistributes water around Earth, it also absorbs and redistributes solar energy between locations. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that Note: In the NASA animation, the depiction of the water reservoirs, such as underground aquifers aquifers: underground water reservoirs that form in the spaces and cracks between rocks, sand, or gravel, where water travels relatively easily., has been simplified to show the molecule pathways. While watching the animation, make a list and keep track of all the places that the molecule travels. The water cycle is essentially a closed system, meaning that the volume of water that is in the hydrosphere today is the same amount of water that has always been present in the Earth system.īegin this lab by watching the following short NASA animation demonstrating the path of one water molecule through the water cycle. The precipitation then becomes run-off or ground water, and works its way over various timescales back into the surface reservoirs. As liquid water evaporates or transpires, it forms water vapor and clouds, where water droplets eventually gain enough mass to fall back to Earth as precipitation. Other water moves from plants to the atmosphere through the process of transpiration. This solar energy drives the cycle by evaporating water from the oceans, lakes, rivers, and even the soil. The water cycle is driven primarily by the energy from the sun. ![]() The water cycle is important to weather and climate and, ultimately, to all life on Earth. Water molecules continuously move from location to location in this cycle. Earth's water supply is recycled in a continuous process known as the water, or hydrologic hydrologic cycle: the process of evaporation, vertical and horizontal transport of vapor, condensation, precipitation, and the flow of water from continents to oceans., cycle. To start the investigation of Earth's energy balance, you will begin by taking an in-depth look at a familiar process known as the water cycle.
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