Review of the Water Cycle

Review of the Water Cycle

·  The water cycle is the continuous process by which water is recycled and moved through the environment.

·  The sun is the source of energy that drives the water cycle.

Three main components of the water cycle:

1.  Evaporation: Evaporation is when molecules at the surface of the water absorb enough energy to change to a gas. Most evaporation takes place over the ocean. Some water evaporates from the rivers and lakes.

2.  Condensation: Clouds form by this process as the water vapor cools and changes from a gas to a liquid.

3.  Precipitation: When the water droplets become heavy enough, they fall back to Earth as precipitation (can be rain, snow, sleet or hail).

The Great Lakes

There are five lakes surrounding Michigan that make up the Great Lakes.

H Lake Huron

O Lake Ontario

M Lake Michigan

E Lake Erie

S Lake Superior

Fun Facts about the Great Lakes:

·  The Great Lakes cover an area twice the size of New York State.

·  They contain nearly 20% of all of the water in the world’s freshwater lakes. Only the polar ice caps contain more fresh water.

·  If you spread the water evenly across the United States, the lakes' water would be about 9.5 feet deep.

How were the Great Lakes Formed??

About 1 million years ago, the ice ages began, and glaciers “dug out” what is now the Great Lakes region. Being over one mile thick, these glaciers flattened and carved large holes in the land. Where they encountered more resistant bedrock only the overlying layers were removed. The softer sandstone and shale allowed the glaciers to dig out the large basins that make up the Great Lakes today.

Movement of Water from the Lansing to the Atlantic Ocean

Grand River à Lake Michigan à Lake Huron à Detroit River à Lake Erie àLake Ontario à St. Lawrence River à Atlantic Ocean