Description

Every droplet of water is on an adventure. Let us join in.

Inside our human body, we have bones, muscles, and blood to keep us strong and healthy

Inside of water are millions of water molecules.  Inside of a water molecule are even smaller atoms: 2 Hydrogen and 1 Oxygen. When hydrogen and oxygen form a bond, like holding hands, they make water.

Now Water can come in many different phases, which change how it looks and what shape it makes. Water can change its phase depending on how the molecules inside of the water are acting.

When the molecules are slow and sluggish, water forms a SOLID. Have you seen solid water like this before? What do you call it? Scientists call this solid kind of water – ice

When the molecules inside of water are relaxed, water is in its LIQUID form. When was the last time you had a glass of water? This is liquid water.

When the molecules inside of water are full of energy and moving very fast, the water turns into a GAS. This forms the clouds in the sky. Can you see any water gas right now?

There are three phases of water: liquid, solid and gas. In these different shapes, water is able to travel all around the world through the Water Cycle. The Water cycle is the movement of water all around the world, and into the sky.

Let us start our adventure as a cloud. Imagine you are a water droplet. Your molecules have lots of energy, so you are able to float around in the sky as a gas. When you find your friends in the sky, also in their gas phase, you join and form a big cloud. This is called Condensation.

However, as more and more water droplet friends join in the cloud, the cloud begins to get very heavy. Your molecules are starting to slow down. What happens when the water molecules inside of a water gas slow down?

It is time for you to change your phase. As the molecules inside of your water droplet slow down, you change from a gas to a liquid. Liquid water does not float in the sky as well as gas. So what do you think happens when liquid water forms in the sky?

It falls to the earth! This is called precipitation. Also known as RAIN.

Imagine your raindrop has landed in a river on the side of a mountain. You begin sliding down the river as if it is a big water slide. You see fish with bright silver scales swimming past. There are bugs flying above the river, and one fish jumps out of the water to try to catch the fly for dinner. A big grizzly bear dips its mouth in the water to take a drink – its big tongue just misses you!

Where do you think this river is going to take your raindrop? As the river runs down the mountain, it is heading directly for the ocean. As you slide into the open sea, you start to notice that the water around you is changing. Along with all of the water droplets, there are also salt molecules. They mix, making the ocean salty.

This is not just any ocean, however. This is the Antarctic Ocean! This ocean is very cold. The molecules inside of your water droplet begin to slow down. Soon the water droplet begins to slow down too, and it changes from liquid water to solid ice. You have joined an iceberg! Now, as ice, you drift across the top of the ocean watching as whales and seals go by.

Now... What do you think happens next? Water travels all around the world. It can change into a gas, a liquid or a solid. It can be freshwater, or it can mix with salt and become salt water. It can also mix with lots of other chemicals - some of which can make animals and plants very sick, including humans. Think about all the ways you use water in your life. Which water droplets have you met? Tell your story to earn the Waterx WaterxWater Badge

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Task

Now… you decide what happens next. The Water Cycle is always moving, and so anything could happen now. Do you stay as an iceberg, or do you melt off back into liquid water and travel more of the world? Maybe your water droplet evaporates and turns from a liquid to a gas to become a cloud again. You decide.

Create a comic strip of your exciting water droplet adventure. Upload an image of your epic water cycle comic to the Video Gallery

Once you have made a submission for the assignment, your badge will appear the next time you log-in! 

To return to the One Big Ocean main page, click HERE

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Learning Objectives

To understand the different states of water and how their changes drive the water cycle that connects all the earth to the ocean.

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Continue to Where River Meets the Sea »