Water Fun Facts!
- On average, the 48 continental United States receive enough precipitation in one year to cover the land to a depth of 30 inches.
- One part of the water cycle that is obviously essential to all life on Earth is the freshwater existing on the land surface.
- The land area from which surface runoff drains into a stream channel, lake, reservoir or other body of water is called a watershed.
- Most of the world’s water (97%) is in oceans and is too salty to use.
- Farmers plant buffer strips to reduce the amount of pollutants that enter nearby water.
- The definition of freshwater is water containing less than 1,000 milligrams per liter of dissolved solids, most often salt.
- The water cycle describes the existence and movement of water on, in, and above the Earth.
- Precipitation is water released from clouds in the form of rain, freezing rain, sleet, snow, or hail.
- The common raindrop is actually shaped more like a hamburger bun.
- Evaporation is the process by which water changes from liquid to a gas or vapor.
- Water freezes at 32 degrees Fahrenheit (0°C) and boils at 212 degrees Fahrenheit (100°C).
- “Aquifer” is another name for a groundwater storage area.
- A spring is the result of an aquifer being filled to the point that the water overflows onto the land surface.
- The average person uses 2 gallons of water while brushing their teeth!
- What do your brain and a tree have in common? Both are three quarters water.
*From the Illinois Agriculture in the Classroom Calendar for Teachers