What powers the water cycle what powers the water cycle?
The sun is what makes the water cycle work. The sun provides what almost everything on Earth needs to go—energy, or heat. Heat causes liquid and frozen water to evaporate into water vapor gas, which rises high in the sky to form clouds… clouds that move over the globe and drop rain and snow.
How are winds related to the water cycle?
Wind also increases evaporation. When the air’s temperature is warmer, it can hold more water. While the atmosphere does not store a large quantity of water compared to the ocean, rivers and lakes, it can transport water quickly from one place to another.
What is the role of wind in the water cycle?
As Earth’s water evaporates, winds move water vapor from the sea to the land, increasing the amount of fresh water on land. Wind and evaporation patterns from the first animation are shown here on a map of the world. The ocean loses water to the air when the water evaporates and turns into water vapor (steam).
Why is a water cycle called a cycle?
The water cycle, also known as the hydrologic cycle, describes the continuous movement of water as it makes a circuit from the oceans to the atmosphere to the Earth and on again. The sun, which drives the water cycle, heats water in the oceans. Some of it evaporates as vapor into the air.
Why is air play an important role in the water cycle?
The atmosphere is the superhighway in the sky that moves water everywhere over the Earth. Water at the Earth’s surface evaporates into water vapor which rises up into the sky to become part of a cloud which will float off with the winds, eventually releasing water back to Earth as precipitation.
How is the water cycle powered by the Sun?
The water cycle is powered by the sun. The energy of the sun causes the water on lakes, streams, and oceans to evaporate and become water vapor. The water vapor rises in the atmosphere to form clouds.
How are ocean currents similar to the wind?
Ocean currents, just like wind, travel from a cooler place to a warmer place. These oceans also contain a lot of water that is part of the water cycle. The water cycle is an amazing natural phenomenon. This cycle happens when water evaporates into the sky, where it builds up and falls down as rain. The process is never ending.
How does the sun affect winds and currents?
This causes the wind that you feel on a breezy day. The same thing happens with the ocean currents. An ocean current is a continuous flow of water in a particular direction. You can liken it to wind, except this occurs underwater. The sun warms up parts of the oceans. Warm waters rise just like warm air rises.
How is the water cycle important to life on Earth?
, cycle. Water molecules continuously move from location to location in this cycle. The water cycle is important to weather and climate and, ultimately, to all life on Earth. The water cycle is driven primarily by the energy from the sun. This solar energy drives the cycle by evaporating water from the oceans, lakes, rivers, and even the soil.