The water cycle & freshwater

1. Where is most of Earth’s fresh water locked up: in glaciers and polar ice caps, or in clouds?

2. When spring temperatures warm mountain snowpacks, the resulting liquid water flowing into streams is called: snowmelt runoff or condensation?

3. What do we call an underground layer of permeable rock, sand or gravel that holds groundwater: an aquifer or a canopy?

4. How does paving over grassy soil with impermeable concrete affect rainwater during a storm: it increases surface runoff, or it increases infiltration?

5. What forms when cold air cools water vapour below 0 °C high in clouds so ice crystals grow into six-sided flakes: snow or dew?

6. What stage of the water cycle occurs when cloud droplets grow heavy enough to fall as rain, snow, sleet or hail: precipitation or evaporation?

7. Where is the largest reservoir of water on Earth (about 97% of all Earth’s water) stored: in the oceans and seas, or in rivers?

8. What do we call water that flows over the land surface into streams, rivers and the sea after rainfall: surface runoff or sublimation?

9. What stage of the water cycle occurs when liquid water at the ocean surface warms and turns into water vapour: evaporation or precipitation?

10. Is water in an open shallow pan on a sunny, breezy afternoon likely to evaporate faster or slower than water in a narrow bottle in the shade?

11. What do we call the release of water vapour into the air from plant leaves through their stomata: transpiration or condensation?

12. What stage of the water cycle occurs when rising water vapour cools high in the atmosphere and forms tiny cloud droplets: condensation or infiltration?