Water Notes Flashcards
(40 cards)
Evaporation
Evaporation: Water from oceans, lakes, and rivers turns into vapor and rises into the atmosphere.
Transpiration
Transpiration: Plants release water vapor into the air through their leaves.
Condensation
Condensation: Water vapor cools and condenses into clouds.
Precipitation
Precipitation: Water falls back to Earth as rain, snow, sleet, or hail.
Runoff:
Runoff: Water flows over the ground and returns to bodies of water.
Off mountains
Sublimation
Sublimation is when a solid turns directly into a gas without becoming a liquid first.
Infiltration
Infiltration is the process where water soaks into the ground from the surface.
Groundwater Outflow
Groundwater outflow is the movement of underground water back to the surface, often into lakes, rivers, or oceans.
Transportation
Refers to the movement of water through rivers, clouds (wind), or ocean currents.
Distribution of Water on Earth
Overview:
Earth’s total water is approximately 1.386 billion cubic kilometers. Here’s how it’s distributed:
Wikipedia
Oceans: 96.5%
Freshwater: 2.5%
Ice Caps & Glaciers: 68.7% of freshwater
Groundwater: 30.1% of freshwater
Surface Water (Lakes, Rivers): 1.2% of freshwater
Acid Precipitation definition
Acid precipitation occurs when sulfur dioxide (SO₂) and nitrogen oxides (NOₓ) from burning fossil fuels combine with water vapor in the atmosphere to form sulfuric and nitric acids, resulting in rain, snow, or fog that is more acidic than normal.
Causes of acid rain
Burning of coal and oil
Industrial emissions
Vehicle exhaust
Greenhouse gas emission
What are the two acid / chemicals
Nitric Acid (HNO₃)
Sulfuric Acid (H₂SO₄)
Sulfuric acid
SO₂ + H₂O → H₂SO₄
Nirtic acid
NO₂ + H₂O → HNO₃
Wetlands
Values:
Water filtration
Flood control
Habitat for wildlife
Carbon storage
Wetlands Threats:
Drainage for agriculture and development
Pollution
Climate change
Wht are IISD Experimental Lakes Area (ELA)
Located in Northwestern Ontario, the IISD ELA consists of 58 small lakes and their watersheds. It’s a world-renowned freshwater research facility where scientists conduct experiments to understand ecological processes and human impacts on freshwater systems .
Coral Reef Adventures
Values:
Biodiversity hotspot
Coastal protection
Source of food and income for million
Threats coral reefs
Climate change (leading to coral bleaching)
Overfishing
Pollution
Potential Solutions:
Coral reefs
Potential Solutions:
Marine protected areas
Coral restoration projects
Sustainable fishing practices
El Niño
✅ What it is:
El Niño is a natural climate pattern where the Pacific Ocean becomes warmer than usual near the equator, especially off the west coast of South America.
🔄 What it does:
Disrupts normal weather patterns around the world.
Causes flooding in some areas and droughts in others.
Weakens trade winds (winds that normally blow from east to west across the Pacific).
🌍 What it helps explain:
Changes in global weather (like storms, wildfires, and hurricanes).
Shifts in fish populations due to warmer ocean waters.
🌎 Coriolis Effect
The Coriolis Effect is the apparent bending of moving air and water due to the rotation of the Earth.
🔄 What it does:
Causes winds and ocean currents to curve:
Right in the Northern Hemisphere.
Left in the Southern Hemisphere.
🌍 What it helps with:
Explains why hurricanes spin the way they do.
Helps form global wind patterns and ocean currents.
Heat Capacity (of water)
✅ What it is:
Heat capacity is the ability of a substance to absorb and store heat. Water has a high heat capacity, which means it takes a lot of energy to heat up or cool down.
🔄 What it does:
Stabilizes Earth’s climate by absorbing heat during the day and releasing it at night.
Keeps oceans and coastal areas cooler in summer and warmer in winter.
🌍 What it helps with:
Reduces temperature extremes between day and night.
Keeps marine ecosystems more stable.
