IRENE
The hydrosphere is the world of water that surrounds all of us. That water may be at the bottom of the ocean or in clouds found in the atmosphere. Anything related to water is a part of the hydrosphere.
PAULA
Water, in its purest form, is the compound H2O. There are two hydrogen (H) atoms bound to one oxygen (O) atom.
There are three different states of water: solid (ice), liquid and gas (water vapour). There are solids in the deep glaciers, liquids from the oceans and the vapour state of clouds.
IRENE
THE WATER CYCLE OR HYDROLOGIC CYCLE
The water cycle is a process where water moves through four phases: evaporation, condensation, precipitation and collection.
PAULA
Evaporation: it is produced when water turns into water vapour (gas).
Condensation: it is takes place when the tiny drops of water come together and form clouds. The water vapour turns into liquid.
IRENE
Precipitation: It is the release of water from the sky. It can be liquid or solid.
Collection: It is produced when water falls into rivers, oceans, lakes and groundwaters.
PAULA
So, how are clouds produced?
when the water evaporates this water vapour goes up and these water drops come together forming clouds. If there is a lot of water in the sky there will be a lot of clouds.
IRENE
WATER BODIES
We already know how important water is to us. ¾ os the earth's surface is covered with water. This water is distributed throughout the planet in various forms and shapes, called the various water bodies.
These water bodies differ in size, from huge ones like oceans and seas, to the small ones like ponds. Some of them are:
PAULA
OCEANS: the oceans are vast and deep bodies of water. Usually, it is these oceans that separate continents from one another. The oceans are bodies of saltwater. There are five oceans on Earth.
SEAS: they are also big water bodies but are definitely smaller than oceans. They are partly enclosed by a land mass and open into the ocean. for example: Mediterranean Sea.
IRENE
LAKES: A lake is a water body surrounded by land on all sides.
GULFS: a gulf is a large area of an ocean or a sea that is partially enclosed by land.
PAULA
BAYS: A bay is a body of water, which is again partially enclosed by land but it is smaller than a gulf.
WATERFALLS: Water falling from a high point is usually called a waterfall.
IRENE
STRAITS: A strait is a narrow stretch of water which joins two larger water bodies.
LAGOONS: A lagoon is a lake separated from the open sea by sand or rocks.
RIVERS: Rivers are large streams that flow over the land.
PAULA
PART OF A RIVER
RIVER SOURCE: It is the part where the river begins, usually in the Highland.
RIVER COURSE: It is the route the river flows over the land. Nearly all rivers have an upper, middle and lower course. The upper course begins in the hills. Here the river is smaller and usually has a rapid flow. When the river descends to lower levels, it runs more slowly. The river swings in great S-shaped curves, forming loops called meanders.
IRENE
RIVER MOUTH: It refers to the end of the river
Most rivers have tributaries. They are small rivers or streams that flow into large rivers.
We can distinguish between the river basis, which is the area of land drained by a river and its branches and the river bed, which is the channel in which a river flows.
PAULA
GROUNDWATER
Many people do not realize that a very large amount of water lies below the Earth's surface. This water is formed when the ground absorbs precipitation and it forms groundwater.
The water travels through the soil by finding routes in porous rocks (rocks with hales in them).
Water
sinks into the ground and collects to form aquifers. These are underground collections of water.