earth science - water on earth

water

• is the fundamental ingredient for life on earth

• is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula H2O

• it is transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance

about 71% of the earth’s surface is covered in water and the ocean holds about 96.5% of all earth’s water

types of water on earth

fresh water

• is found naturally on the earth’s surface as ice, wetlands, ponds, lakes, rivers, streams, and as groundwater in aquifers

• usually has low concentration of dissolved salts and solids

salt water

• also known as seawater

• found in earth’s oceans and seas

• it has a concentration of dissolved salts of about 3.5%

brackish water

• the salinity of this water is somewhere between fresh and seawater

• it can range between 0.5 to 30 grams of salt per liter

hard water

• it is also known as calcareous water

• has a high mineral content (particularly magnesium and calcium salts)

soft water

• contains very small amounts of dissolved salts

• it may be defines as water with less than 50mg per liter of calcium carbonate

groundwater

• water that exist underground in saturated zones beneath the land surface

potable water

• also called as drinking water

• water fit for human consumption which has undergone appropriate treatment

waste water

• is any type of water whose quality has been negatively affected by human activity

black water

• a kind of water that has been polluted with feces and urine

water cycle

1. water evaporates from the surface of the earth (evaporation)

2. rises into the atmosphere

3. cools and condenses into rain or snow in clouds (condensation)

4. falls again to the surface (precipitation)

precipitation

• is a vital component of how water moves through earth’s water cycle connecting the ocean, land, and atmosphere