On the planet’s surface, all plant life is gone. As the world burned, the atmosphere would become less and less oxygenated, perhaps becoming unbreathable for humans, even if they could somehow tolerate the extreme surface temperatures. The land would fry.

Water constantly moves around the Earth and changes between solid, liquid and gas. This all depends on the Sun’s energy. Without the Sun there would be no water cycle, which means no clouds, no rain—no weather!” “And without the Sun’s heat, the world’s oceans would be frozen!” added Marisol.

Most fresh water is trapped as ice in the vast glaciers and ice sheets of Greenland. A storage location for water such as an ocean, glacier, pond, or even the atmosphere is known as a reservoir. A water molecule may pass through a reservoir very quickly or may remain for much longer.

The water cycle is an extremely important process because it enables the availability of water for all living organisms and regulates weather patterns on our planet. If water didn’t naturally recycle itself, we would run out of clean water, which is essential to life.

Why is the hydrologic cycle important? The hydrologic cycle is important because it is how water reaches plants, animals and us! Besides providing people, animals and plants with water, it also moves things like nutrients, pathogens and sediment in and out of aquatic ecosystems.

So how can we understand this magical process called the water cycle? There are four main parts to the water cycle: Evaporation, Convection, Precipitation and Collection. Evaporation is when the sun heats up water in rivers or lakes or the ocean and turns it into vapour or steam.

A fundamental characteristic of the hydrologic cycle is that it has no beginning an it has no end. It can be studied by starting at any of the following processes: evaporation, condensation, precipitation, interception, infiltration, percolation, transpiration, runoff, and storage.

In contrast, boiling only occurs at the boiling point of the liquid. An example of condensation can be seen when drops of water form on the outside of a glass of ice water. The dew that forms on grass overnight is another example of condensation. Condensation happens when molecules in a gas cool down.

The water that drips from air conditioners is probably even safe for drinking. (It’s certainly more potable than the drinking water in many countries.)

Water vapour from the air condenses on the coils and drips into a tank. The condensed water is pure because when the water originally evaporated into the air, it left its impurities and minerals behind. We don’t have to resort to drinking water that drips from a dehumidifier. Tap water is perfectly acceptable!

The water used by plants can go back into the earth by transpiration. The evaporation and condensation are the key terms that help water purifying. While these processes occur during the water cycle, it can also be used to purify water for drinking or industry use. Water is always moving.

The methods used include physical processes such as filtration, sedimentation, and distillation; biological processes such as slow sand filters or biologically active carbon; chemical processes such as flocculation and chlorination; and the use of electromagnetic radiation such as ultraviolet light.

Bacteria do not evaporate. Anything that agitates the water and throws droplets into the air will alter this, of course.

Vapor steam cleaners are cited as examples of “green cleaning” because of steam vapor’s ability to kill germs and in some cases disinfect without the use of chemical disinfectants. Steam vapor has also been cited as effective in killing dust mites in carpet, bedding, and upholstery.