write an essay on water cycle

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The Water Cycle, Essay Example

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Water is an important element for the survival of living things.  The hydrologic cycle refers to the precipitation and evaporation of water from the atmosphere and back to the earth. Water on earth is mostly found in the ocean, which covers over 70% of the earth’s surface and is the source for the major reservoir.  In fact, the oceans contain about 97% of the earth’s available water. The hydrologic cycle is driven through solar energy, which causes the water to evaporate into the atmosphere and return to the earth’s surface in the form of precipitation via gravity. Water that falls onto the land can be absorbed through living organisms, such as plants.  Water molecules taken up by plants are returned to the atmosphere in form of evaporation from leaves. Other water molecules are absorbed into the water and undergo photosynthesis through combining with carbon dioxide resulting in high energy molecules referred to as glucose. These glucose molecules are then further broken down during cellular respiration of living organisms into water and carbon dioxide and released back into the atmosphere.

The patterns of both precipitation and evaporation result in the distribution of plants on the earth’s surface.  For instance, this change in hydrologic cycle can be observed in different types of habitats, such as the desert or rain forest.  In deserts, there is a decrease observed in living communities due to the decrease in biological productivity from the lack of water. On the other hand in rain forests, there is an abundance of water resulting in an increased biological productivity.  In these habitats, therefore, different types of plant species and abundance occur. Changes in the hydrologic cycle could results in changes of plant communities in these areas, which thereby effect the distribution of plants on earth.

Living organisms in an ecosystem require both energy and nutrients in order to maintain life activities essential to living organisms, such as growth, development and reproductions. Plants are key to the cycle of energy and nutrients within an ecosystem.  The plants capture sunlight and convert the sunlight into chemical energy through the process of photosynthesis. The energy captured through the plants is transferred through the food chain starting with the herbivores. The herbivores eat plants and obtain energy.  Carnivore animals eat the herbivores to obtain energy. Scavengers obtain energy from left over animal remains.  Finally, decomposers obtain energy through decaying material. Sunlight provides the energy that powers life. Nutrients and C N P H20 enter the ecosystem via the non-living components of the planet, such as the atmosphere, earth, or ocean.  Solar energy continually bombards the earth and provides a limitless source of energy.  This flow of energy is limitless since the energy provided from the sun is limitless.  However, the nutrients essential for living organisms is limited.  For instance, the earth only contains a certain amount of available Carbon, Phosphorus, or Nitrogen. The process of photosynthesis provides 1/7 th of the available carbon. Therefore, if cellular respiration were to discontinue and carbon dioxide was not released into the atmosphere, energy for life would also discontinue, as the availability of Carbon would decrease or end for the uptake of plants.  Therefore, the flow of energy and the cycling of nutrients play major roles in the populations within an ecosystem.

The differences in ecosystems depend of two different types of factors. These are abiotic and biotic factors.  The abiotic factors refer to components such as non-living things such as water and light.  The biotic factors are the living community of organisms. Different habitats are comprised of different abiotic and biotic factors.  In a swamp, the most important abiotic factor is water. The water in a swamp has a huge biotic community for micro biotic organisms, such as animal and plant-like protists, fish, plants, insects, amphibians, and reptiles.  Birds and mammals also utilize the swamps as well. All of the biotic community comprises the biotic factors.

Matter and energy flow through an ecosystem when organisms feed on one another, making up the food chain. Food producers are the first chain, such as plants and algae that capture sunlight and convert chemical energy to food via photosynthesis. After the food producers, are the consumers. Consumers consume food producers; therefore, they eat the plant material. Next are the second order consumers, third order consumers and decomposers.

Pyramids were developed to illustrate the energy flow through an ecosystem with the producers on the bottom, consumers, 2 nd order consumers, and third order consumers at the top. This pyramid showed that 16% of the energy is passed on to the consumers, 11% to the secondary consumers, and only 5% to the third order consumers.

The Carbon cycle moves through ecosystems starting with air, since it contains carbon dioxide.  Plants absorb carbon dioxide and break it down to glucose and oxygen. Carbon dioxide also diffuses into water for aquatic plants.  Some of the Carbon atoms are used to build body tissue and other molecules are returned back to the atmosphere. Carbon is also released back to the environment through the burning of wood or fossil fuels. Decomposers also return Carbon to the atmosphere as well. All of these components affect the carbon cycle.

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water cycle

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• NASA - Global Precipitation Measurement - The Water Cycle
• U.S. Geological Survey - The Water Cycle
• Chemistry Libretexts - Water Cycle
• Northwest River Forecast Center - The Water Cycle
• NeoK12 - Educational Videos and Games for School Kids - Water Cycle
• Pennsylvania State University - Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering - Understanding water cycle
• UCAR Center for Science Education - The Water Cycle
• water cycle - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11)
• water cycle - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)

• What are the main stages of the water cycle?
• How does evaporation contribute to the water cycle?
• What role do clouds play in the water cycle?
• How does precipitation occur in the water cycle?
• What is the importance of groundwater in the water cycle?
• How does human activity impact the natural water cycle?
• What is transpiration and how does it relate to the water cycle?
• How does the water cycle affect climate and weather patterns?
• What are aquifers and how do they fit into the water cycle?

water cycle , cycle that 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.

A brief treatment of the water cycle follows. For full treatment, see hydrosphere: The water cycle .

Evaporation , one of the major processes in the cycle, is the transfer of water from the surface of the Earth to the atmosphere. By evaporation, water in the liquid state is transferred to the gaseous , or vapor, state. This transfer occurs when some molecules in a water mass have attained sufficient kinetic energy to eject themselves from the water surface. The main factors affecting evaporation are temperature , humidity , wind speed, and solar radiation . The direct measurement of evaporation, though desirable, is difficult and possible only at point locations. The principal source of water vapor is the oceans , but evaporation also occurs in soils , snow , and ice . Evaporation from snow and ice, the direct conversion from solid to vapor, is known as sublimation. Transpiration is the evaporation of water through minute pores, or stomata, in the leaves of plants . For practical purposes, transpiration and the evaporation from all water, soils, snow, ice, vegetation, and other surfaces are lumped together and called evapotranspiration , or total evaporation.

Water vapor is the primary form of atmospheric moisture. Although its storage in the atmosphere is comparatively small, water vapor is extremely important in forming the moisture supply for dew , frost , fog , clouds , and precipitation. Practically all water vapour in the atmosphere is confined to the troposphere (the region below 6 to 8 miles [10 to 13 km] altitude).

The transition process from the vapor state to the liquid state is called condensation . Condensation may take place as soon as the air contains more water vapour than it can receive from a free water surface through evaporation at the prevailing temperature. This condition occurs as the consequence of either cooling or the mixing of air masses of different temperatures. By condensation, water vapor in the atmosphere is released to form precipitation .

Precipitation that falls to the Earth is distributed in four main ways: some is returned to the atmosphere by evaporation, some may be intercepted by vegetation and then evaporated from the surface of leaves , some percolates into the soil by infiltration, and the remainder flows directly as surface runoff into the sea. Some of the infiltrated precipitation may later percolate into streams as groundwater runoff. Direct measurement of runoff is made by stream gauges and plotted against time on hydrographs.

Most groundwater is derived from precipitation that has percolated through the soil. Groundwater flow rates, compared with those of surface water, are very slow and variable, ranging from a few millimeters to a few meters a day. Groundwater movement is studied by tracer techniques and remote sensing.

Ice also plays a role in the water cycle. Ice and snow on the Earth’s surface occur in various forms such as frost, sea ice , and glacier ice. When soil moisture freezes, ice also occurs beneath the Earth’s surface, forming permafrost in tundra climates . About 18,000 years ago glaciers and ice caps covered approximately one-third of the Earth’s land surface. Today about 12 percent of the land surface remains covered by ice masses.

The Process of the Water Cycle Research Paper

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Introduction

Water cycle process, works cited.

Nature comprises many processes that recycle various elements to avoid human wastage. Nature does not waste any of its elements and recycles them all including water, air and organic fertility. Recycling of natural elements occurs in order to maintain ecological balance for survival of all living species.

However, human beings have meddled with nature so much that problems such as depletion of ozone layer and global warming are inflicting the human race adversely (Kalman and Sjonger 11). An example of a process in which nature recycles one of its constituent elements is the water cycle. By definition, the water cycle is a continuous movement of water between the earth surface and the atmosphere (Kalman and Sjonger 11).

The water moves from water bodies such as oceans and rivers into the atmosphere and vice versa. It involves several states of matter including solid, gas and liquid in which water changes its form in an unending cycle of precipitation (Kalman and Sjonger 2). The cycle involves several steps that include evaporation, precipitation, run-off and percolation. Each of these steps plays a role in continuing the water cycle.

The water cycle is important in maintaining the right amount of water in nature. In addition, it facilitates the storage of underground water that is used when there is no precipitation (Olien 8). There are several steps involved in the water cycle.

They include evaporation, condensation, precipitation, infiltration, sub-surface flow and run-off (Olien 8). In all these steps, water is converted into different states of matter including liquid, gas and solid. Heat exchange is one of the processes that are involved in all the steps. In each of these steps, heat is either lost or gained.

Evaporation

This is the process by which water changes from liquid form to gaseous form (Olien 9). It is the primary process that drives the movement of water from water bodies into the atmosphere in form of water vapor. The main water bodies include oceans, sea, lakes, rivers, dams, streams and ponds.

They provide approximately 90% of the vapor in the atmosphere. The other 10% comes from plants through the process of transpiration (Olien 9). Evaporation takes place when heat from solar energy heats up water in water bodies and causes it to change from liquid to gas. On the other hand, evapotranspiration is the process of water release from the surface of plants and soil due to evaporation (Olien 10).

Transpiration contributes a very low percentage of water vapor in the water cycle. Evaporation is the main process that drives the water cycle. Afterwards, the water vapor rises to the atmosphere and the next step of condensation begins. Research has established that after water molecules rises into the atmosphere, they spend approximately 10 days before being released as precipitation.

Condensation

This is the process by which water vapor changes from vapor into liquid, and is the reverse process of evaporation (Olien 11). Condensation plays a significant part in the water cycle because it results in the formation of clouds. After clouds are formed, they possess the ability to produce precipitation.

Precipitation is the main route through which water returns to the earth surface after the process of evaporation (Olien 11). In times when clouds are not visible, water is still present but in the form of vapor and small water droplets.

Clouds are formed from the combination of these water droplets with atmospheric elements such as dust, smoke and salt. They form tiny cloud droplets that enlarge into clouds as more droplets combine with atmospheric elements. Cloud droplets have different sizes that range from 10 microns to 5 millimeter (Olien 12).

This process takes place in the higher parts of the atmosphere because the weather conditions found there encourage condensation. This is because temperatures are cooler than the lower parts of the atmosphere. As water droplets coalesce, clouds and precipitation may form at the same time. Precipitation refers to clouds in either liquid or solid form falling to the surface of the earth from the clouds (Olien 13).

Precipitation

Precipitation refers to the process by which water is discharged from the atmosphere in a liquid or solid form into the surface of the earth, be it land or water surface (Kalman and Sjonger 16). Precipitation is released from the atmosphere in many forms that include snow, hail, freezing rain, sleet or rain.

It is the main channel that returns water into the surface of the earth. In most cases, precipitation is released as rain. Some precipitation is released from the atmosphere in form of snow, which accumulates in certain places on the ground to form glaciers and icecaps. When temperatures rise during spring, they melt and the water flows back into water bodies.

These structures store water for long periods. Clouds comprise water vapor, which accumulates over a long period to form precipitation (Kalman and Sjonger 16). Precipitation happens when these droplets gain a fall velocity that is greater than the cloud updraft speed. This takes a long time because a single raindrop is made by a combination of millions of tiny cloud droplets.

Surface run-off

This is the runoff of precipitation on the surface of the earth (Kalman and Sjonger 18). When rain hits an impervious surface on the ground, it flows over the surface. This water then flows back into water bodies and evaporates to continue the cycle. It flows into lakes, rivers and streams, from which t floes into the oceans.

Approximately, a complete water cycle takes 9 days. During runoff, water may infiltrate the ground, evaporate or flow back into water bodies. Only about 30% of precipitation that falls from the atmosphere flows back into the oceans. The other 70% evaporates, infiltrates the ground or is transpired (Olien 20). Human beings can also divert surface runoff to desired places for use in agriculture.

Infiltration

This refers to the process of water movement from the earth surface into the ground. A small portion of infiltrated water is held by the shallow soil layer from which it flows horizontally and vertically through the soil layer into the atmosphere (Olien 21). Some water seeps through the ground surface and flows into streams while the rest infiltrates further into the ground and replenishes the ground-water aquifers.

If these aquifers are porous, then people can drill water holes into the aquifers to draw water for domestic and agricultural uses (Kalman and Sjonger 23). Water that infiltrates into the ground stays there for some time before seeping into streams or moving vertically to the surface from where it evaporates.

Ground water storage and discharge

Some water infiltrates into the deep regions of the earth surface and is stored there for long periods. Despite being trapped in the depths of the earth, the water moves slowly since it is part of the water cycle. Ground water is stored in structures known as aquifers. To participate effectively in the water cycle, ground water seeps through the ground and enters the main water bodies by horizontal movement.

The structure of quifers and confining soil and rock layers are the main factors that determine the speed of groundwater movement. In addition, the movement of the water depends on the permeability and porosity of the soil constituents that hold the water. Because of gravity, groundwater moves further downwards into the ground surface and may never move back to the water cycle. It remains trapped in the ground for thousands of years.

Nature comprises many processes that recycle various elements for reuse. Nature has no wastage and recycles all elements including water, air and organic fertility. An example of a process in which nature recycles one of its constituent element is the water cycle. By definition, water cycle is a continuous movement of water between the earth surface and the atmosphere.

The water moves from water bodies found on the surface of the earth to the atmosphere and vice versa. Steps involved in the water cycle include evaporation, condensation, precipitation, infiltration, sub-surface flow and run-off. In all these steps, water is converted into different states of matter including liquid, gas and solid. Water evaporates from the surface of the earth, moves into the atmosphere as vapor and condenses to form clouds.

These clouds fall back to the earth surface as precipitation in form of rain, sleet or snow. Some water seeps through the ground surface and flows into streams while the rest infiltrates further into the ground and replenishes the ground-water aquifers. It stays there for some time before seeping into streams or moving vertically to the surface from where it evaporates.

The water cycle is important in maintaining the right amount of water in nature. In addition, it facilitates the storage of underground water that is used when there is no precipitation or during droughts. Some water infiltrates into the deep regions of the earth surface and is stored there for long periods. Despite being trapped in the depths of the earth, the water moves slowly since it is part of the water cycle.

Kalman, Bobbie and Sjonger, Rebecca. The Water Cycle . New York: Crabtree Publishing Company, 2006. Print.

Olien, Rebecca. The Water Cycle . New York: Capstone, 2005. Print.

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IvyPanda. (2018, July 2). The Process of the Water Cycle. https://ivypanda.com/essays/the-process-of-the-water-cycle/

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The Importance Of The Water Cycle (Free Essay Example)

Ben Albrecht

The water cycle, also known as the hydrological cycle, is an essential process that circulates water throughout the Earth’s atmosphere, surface, and underground reservoirs. This continuous movement of water is crucial for sustaining life, regulating climate, and shaping our planetary environment. By understanding the importance of the water cycle, we can better appreciate its vital role in maintaining ecological balance and ensuring the availability of fresh water for all forms of life. One of the key aspects of the water cycle is its contribution to maintaining freshwater availability. Through processes like evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and infiltration, water is continuously purified and redistributed. When water evaporates from oceans, rivers, and lakes, it leaves behind salts and other impurities, rising into the atmosphere to form clouds. As vapor cools and condenses into droplets, it eventually falls back to Earth as precipitation. This rain and snow replenish groundwater supplies, feed rivers and lakes, and provide essential moisture to support agriculture and natural ecosystems. Without this natural recycling system, the availability of clean, fresh water would be severely compromised, leading to increased scarcity and competition for this finite resource. The water cycle also plays a significant role in regulating the Earth’s climate. Large bodies of water, such as oceans and seas, store vast amounts of solar energy and release it slowly, moderating temperatures and influencing weather patterns. Evaporation and condensation processes are integral to transferring heat within the atmosphere, contributing to the formation of clouds and precipitation. This regulation of temperature and moisture is critical for sustaining diverse climatic zones, each supporting unique ecosystems and human activities. When the water cycle is disrupted, as seen in cases of severe droughts or flooding, the imbalance can lead to devastating impacts on both natural habitats and human communities. Additionally, the water cycle is fundamental to nutrient cycling and soil formation. When precipitation infiltrates the soil, it helps to transport essential nutrients to plant roots, facilitating growth and productivity. In turn, plants contribute to the water cycle through transpiration, where water is absorbed from the soil and released into the atmosphere. This process not only supports plant and tree growth but also helps to stabilize the soil, preventing erosion and maintaining the integrity of land habitats. In ecosystems such as wetlands, the interplay of water, plants, and soil forms intricate and highly productive environments that support a vast diversity of life. In conclusion, the water cycle is an indispensable process that sustains life, regulates climate, and nourishes ecosystems. By continuously recycling water, it ensures the availability of fresh water necessary for drinking, agriculture, and industrial processes. Its role in temperature regulation and nutrient transport underscores its importance in maintaining ecological balance and supporting biodiversity. Recognizing the critical functions of the water cycle can help us develop sustainable practices to protect and preserve this vital natural system for future generations.

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Home / Essay Samples / Environment / Water Cycle / Understanding The Water Cycle: A Fundamental Process

Understanding The Water Cycle: A Fundamental Process

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• Topic: Water , Water Cycle

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The components of the water cycle.

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