water on earth

hydrosphere

total amount of water on, under, and above the surface of the Earth

evaporation

liquid water → water vapor (heat from the sun), mainly from oceans

transpiration

water vapor released by plants (combined with evaporation = evapo__________)

condensation

water vapor → liquid droplets, forming clouds

precipitation

water falls back to earth (snow, rain, hail)

infiltration

water seeps into the ground becoming groundwater

runoff

water flows over land into rivers, lakes, and oceans

sublimation

ice/snow turns directly into vapor (skips liquids phase)

percolation

downward movement of water through solid/rock layers

oceans

largest water bodies

seas

smaller, partially enclosed by land, connected to oceans

lakes

inalnd bodies of standing water

rivers/streams

flowing freshwater bodies; have a source (headwater), course, mouth (where it meets a larger body), often forming a delta

groundwater

water stored in soil and rock pores beneath the surface; stored in aquifers (permeable rock layers that hold water)

glaciers and ice caps

frozen freshwater, largest reservoir of freshwater on earth

wetlands

transitional areas between land and water, high biodiversity, natural water fillers and flood buffrs

thermocline

zone of rapid temperature decrease with depth

deep zone

cold, dense, dark; relatively uniform temperature

surface currents

driven by wind, coriolis effect, and continental landmasses

deep currents

driven by differences in temperature and salinity

tides

periodic rise and fall of sea level

spring tides

highest high/lowest lows; occur during new/full moon

neap tides

smallest tidal range; occur during first/third quarter moon

waves

caused mainly by wind; energy moves through water

water pollution

contamination from industrial waste

eutrophication

excess nutrients (N, P) cause algal blooms, depleting dissolved oxygen, killing aquatic life

water scarcity

imbalance between water demand and available supply

saltwater intrusion

seawater contaminating freshwater aquifers due to over-extraction of groundwater

watershed

land area that drains/contributes water to a particular river, lake, or other body of water