How does water return as rain?

Water turns into air

The sun warms the lake. Tiny water particles move faster and some escape from the surface into the air.

Water becomes invisible steam. This is called evaporation. Arrows on the screen help to visualize his path.

Warm, moist air can rise. The water did not disappear - it began its journey. Heat up the lake and see.

Drops gather in the cloud

Higher up the air is usually colder. When moist air cools enough, water vapor particles collect into small droplets.

A lot of such drops together is a cloud. The steam itself is invisible, but we see the cloud thanks to the droplets.

The droplets are very small. Air prevents them from falling quickly, and air currents can lift them. That's why the cloud doesn't fall all at once.

The water comes back down

In the cloud, small drops meet and connect. The resulting drops are larger and heavier.

The earth pulls them down. Larger droplets have an easier time falling through the air. When they fall from the cloud it rains.

The water flowed back into the lake and onto the ground. The sun can warm her once again. So the journey of water repeats itself again and again.