The Water Book
Look at the painting. Read a few short lines. Then go outside and watch it happen.
1
Where does rain come from?
A cloud is made of tiny drops of water. Some clouds hold bits of ice too. The drops are so small they float.
When drops bump together, they grow. Soon they are too heavy to float. They fall as rain.
That water was once in a puddle or a lake or the sea. The sun lifted it into the air as an invisible gas.
2
Where did it go?
A puddle does not soak into the ground all at once. Much of it leaves a little at a time. It turns into a gas called water vapor and drifts into the air.
Scientists call that evaporation. Sun and wind make it go faster.
You cannot see water vapor. You only see the puddle getting smaller.
3
Did it rain last night?
It did not. Dew does not fall from the sky. It forms right on the grass.
At night the ground cools. Water vapor in the air touches the cool leaves and turns back into drops.
That is why dew shows up on a clear, calm morning. It is gone by noon.
4
Why is it white and spiky?
When a surface falls below freezing, water vapor can turn straight into ice. It skips the drop stage.
The ice grows in thin crystals. That is why frost looks feathery.
Frost often forms on cold, clear nights. Leaves, rails and windows get it first.
5
Where is all this water going?
Water runs downhill. Rain runs into creeks. Creeks run into rivers. Rivers run to the sea.
Moving water carries sand and small stones. Over a long time it rounds the stones. That is why creek rocks feel smooth.
Fast water pushes harder. Slow water drops what it carries.
6
Is that a cloud on the ground?
Yes. Fog is a cloud that touches the ground. It is made of tiny floating drops of water.
Fog forms when air cools enough that water vapor turns into drops. Calm mornings near water make good fog.
When the sun warms the air, the drops turn back into vapor. The fog lifts.
7
Why six sides?
A snowflake is an ice crystal. It starts tiny and grows as it falls.
The way water freezes makes every crystal six-sided. The arms change shape as the air changes. Warm air, cold air, wet air.
That is why snowflakes can look so different.
8
Where do the colors come from?
Sunlight looks white. It is really all the colors mixed together.
When light goes into a raindrop, it bends and splits. Red bends the least. Violet bends the most. The colors spread out into a band.
To see a rainbow, keep the sun behind you. The rain must be in front of you.
9
What is that you can see?
Hot water gives off water vapor. Water vapor is invisible.
What you see above a hot cup is not vapor. It is tiny drops that formed when the vapor cooled in the air.
Look just above the surface. There is a small clear gap. The vapor is in that gap.
10
Is it melting or freezing?
Both. Snow on a roof melts when the sun or the warm house heats it. The water runs to the edge.
At the edge, the air is cold. Water freezes there, drop by drop. The icicle grows longer.
A drip freezing in the cold, layer by layer. That is an icicle.
Check a box each time you see it happen. No hurry. Some wait for the right weather.