Is there thermal energy in 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… This process is a large part of the water cycle.
How is thermal energy transferred in the water cycle?
As discussed earlier, the water cycle not only redistributes water around Earth, it also absorbs and redistributes solar energy between locations. Latent heating. Through the process of latent heating, energy is transferred into the atmosphere when the water vapor condenses during the formation of clouds.
How does gravity and energy affect the water cycle?
Gravity causes precipitation to fall from clouds and water to flow downward on the land through watersheds. Energy from the sun and the force of gravity drive the continual cycling of water among these reservoirs. As the water is heated, it changes state from a liquid to a gas. This process is called evaporation.
How do solar energy and gravity drive the processes of the water cycle?
The sun, which drives the water cycle, heats water in the oceans. Some of it evaporates as vapor into the air. Most precipitation falls back into the oceans or onto land, where, due to gravity, the precipitation flows over the ground as surface runoff.
What heat transfer is the water cycle?
Convection
Convection: the mass transfer of heat from one place to another. It happens as a group of heated molecules moves to another location taking the heat with them. Convection in the water cycle is when the air near the surface is heated, then rises taking heat with it.
Is gravity important in water cycle?
It pulls precipitation down from clouds and pulls water downhill. Gravity also moves air and ocean water. Gravity pulls denser air and water downward, forcing less dense air and water to move upward. The warm water near the surface of the ocean heats up with sunlight and evaporates, keeping the water cycle in motion.