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Water Cycle
Flash cards on water cycle, weather, clouds
Term | Definition |
---|---|
water cycle | the never ending process that involves water moving from the surface of the Earth to the air and then back to the Earth’s surface |
precipitation | water that falls back to the Earth in the form of rain, snow, sleet, or hail |
evaporation | the process in which a liquid changes into a gas |
condensation | the process in which a gas changes into a liquid |
rain | the most common kind of precipitation. It falls as liquid water as water droplets |
sleet | frozen rain that is caused when rain falls through a layer of freezing-cold air where it turns into ice pellets |
snow | is made of ice crystals caused when the air temperature is so cold that water vapor turns directly into ice |
hail | round pieces of ice caused when rain freezes and then falls to a warmer part where the new liquid freezes until the ice is too heavy and it falls to the ground |
tornado | a severe storm that has a fast-spinning spiral of wind that stretches from the clouds of a thunderstorm to the ground. They can have wind speeds greater than 250 miles per hour |
hurricane | a large tropical storm with wind speeds from 74 to 155 miles per hour. This severe storm forms over warm water in the tropical oceans. They can last for weeks at sea but weaken when over land. The center of the hurricane is the “eye” where it is calm |
storm surge | a huge bulge of water caused by the winds of a hurricane and the ocean waters. It is pushed onto land where it can cause flooding |
sea breeze | a breeze moving from the water to the land |
land breeze | a breeze moving from the land to the water |
rain shadow | the area on the far side of a mountain range that gets little or no rain or cloud cover |
air mass | a large body of air where all the air has a similar temperature and moisture level (the amount of water in the air) |
cold front | forms where a cold air mass causes a warm air mass to move upward |
warm front | forms where warm air moves over cold air |
barometer | measure air pressure |
anemometer | measures wind speed |