Natural water cycle stages

The water cycle is the continuous movement of water between the land, the ocean and the atmosphere.

Water is always cycling around, through, and above the earth. As it moves through the cycle, water continually changes from liquid to gas and back to liquid. The liquid can also get cold and freeze into ice. Water becomes ice at 0° centigrade.

Main water cycle stages

1. Evaporation: when the sun heats water in rivers or lakes or the ocean, it turns into water vapour or steam. This rises through the air into the atmosphere.
2. Condensation: water vapour in the air gets cold and changes back into tiny liquid droplets, forming clouds. This is called condensation.
3. Precipitation: occurs when so much water has condensed that the air cannot support its weight. Water falls from the clouds back to earth in the form of rain, hail, sleet or snow.
4. Infiltration: when water falls and soaks into the ground.
5. Run-off: when water does not soak into the ground and runs-off into gullies, streams and rivers.
6. Transpiration: the process by which water evaporates from the leaves of plants. Transpiration gives evaporation a hand in getting the water vapour back up into the air.