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The Global Watercycle

Earth is a unique, living planet due to the abundance of water and the vigorous cycling and replenishing of water throughout our global environment. The global water cycle describes the transport and transformation of water within the Earth system, and as such, distributes fresh water over the Earth's surface.

The cycling of water in the Earth's system employs water in all three of its phases: solid, liquid, and gaseous. Overall, the global water cycle and its associated energy and nutrient exchanges among the atmosphere, ocean, and land determine the Earth's climate and cause much of climate's natural variability.

This animation is a conceptualization of the major components of the global water cycle, and demonstrates how these components contribute to regulating the cycling of water in our environment.

Animation by:
Mark Malanoski, NASA GSFC Visualization Laboratory

Directed by:
Paul Houser, Center for Research on Envionment and Water (CREW)

Consultant:
Debbie Belvedere, Center for Research on Envionment and Water (CREW)

Scientific Consultant:
C. Adam Schlosser, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

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Conditions of Use
Any and all materials published on the GSFC Earth Science Enterprise Water and Energy Cycle web site are freely available for re-publication or re-use, except where copyright is indicated. We ask that the GSFC Earth Science Enterprise Water and Energy Cycle web site (http://gwec.gsfc.nasa.gov/) be given credit for its original materials.