Earth's Resources
aquifer
An underground layer of rock where ground water collects. The water in a well usually comes from an aquifer
surface water
Fresh water in lakes, streams, and rivers
Lotic
Moving water such as creeks, rivers, and streams
Lentic
Standing water such as ponds, lakes, and swamps
reservoir
The body of water that is stored behind a dam. A reservoir stores fresh water for a town or city
precipitation
The liquid or solid forms of water that fall to Earth. (Rain, sleet, hail, and snow are different kinds of precipitation.)
water cycle
The path that water follows as it evaporates into the air, condenses into clouds, and returns to Earth as rain, snow, sleet, or hail. In the water cycle, water evaporates from lakes and oceans into the air and then condenses and falls back to Earth as rain or snow
ground water
The water found beneath Earth's surface. In some areas, ground water fills the small spaces that are between underground rocks, soil, and sand.
condensation
To change form from a gas to a liquid. When water vapor in the air cools, it condenses into tiny droplets of liquid water.
evaporation
To change form from a liquid to a gas. On a warm dry day, puddles on the sidewalk evaporate quickly.
water vapor
Water that is in the form of a gas. Steam, which is invisible is water vapor.
watershed
the area that drains into a lake, stream, or river via streams or ditches, directly over the ground surface or through the ground
Water Treatment Plant
the process of making water more useful
transpiration
the process where plants absorb water through the roots and then give off water vapor through pores in their leaves