Water Earths Water The atmosphere keeps Earth warm

Water

Earth’s Water • The atmosphere keeps Earth warm enough for water to exist in its liquid form. • 75% of Earth is covered by water. – Hydrosphere – Earth’s water environment: oceans, lakes, rivers and other bodies of water. – ONLY 2. 5% of this is found as fresh water. • 70% of the fresh water locked in ice. • 1% in liquid form – ONLY. 08% of fresh water in liquid form, is available for domestic use.

Water Cycle • The circulation of water within the atmosphere – Powered by the sun Condensation Evaporation Precipitation Runoff

Evaporation • The process by which a liquid water becomes a gas, due to added heat. – water to water vapor • Transpiration - water loss from the leaves of plants. • Humidity - The measure of the amount of water vapor in the air.

Relative Humidity – The amount of water vapor in a given volume of air, compared to the total amount that it could hold at a given temperature = relative humidity. • Cold air = little moisture – More dense and less volume • Warm air = lots of moisture – Less dense and greater volume • Finding Relative Humidity 1. Use two types of thermometers and find the difference between the two temperatures: Dry Bulb - Wet Bulb = Wet-Bulb Depression 2. Use the chart to find the intersection of the dry bulb temperature and the depression.

Relative Humidity Dry Bulb (F) Wet Bulb (F) Depression 80 40 70 10 100 35 97 5 3 Relative Humidity (%) 61% 90%

Condensation • The process by which a gas becomes a liquid or solid, through the loss of heat – water vapor to water or ice • clouds • 3 Types of Clouds: – Based on altitude in the troposphere 1. Cumulus 2. Stratus 3. Cirrus

Stratus • Below 2 km – Flat layers • Strato = “spread out” • Cover all or most of the sky • Nimbostratus = Produce drizzle, rain or snow – Nimbo = rain

Cumulus • 2 km above ground • Cumulus means “heap” or “mass” • Look fluffy, rounded piles of cotton – Indicate fair weather • Cumulonimbus = “thunderheads” – Nimbus is Latin for “rain” • 7 km above ground

Cirrus • Form only at high levels, above 6 km with low temperatures – Wispy, feathery – Made of ice crystals • Cirrocumulus look like rows of cotton balls – Indicate a storm is on its way

Precipitation • Any form of water that falls from clouds and reaches Earth’s surface. – ALWAYS comes from clouds! • Types of Precipitation: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Rain Sleet Freezing Rain Hail Snow

Precipitation Maps

Precipitation Map Analysis 1. What units were used to measure the annual precipitation? inches 2. How much annual precipitation does Long Island receive? 44 inches 3. What range of precipitation would Syracuse be in? 36 -40 inches 4. Which location in NY State received the greatest amount of annual precipitation? Catskills – How much? 56 -60 inches 5. Which location in NY State received the least amount of annual precipitation? Champlain Lowlands – How much? 28 -32 inches