Water
Across
- 3. The continuous movement of water between Earth’s surface and the atmosphere through evaporation, condensation, precipitation, and runoff.
- 5. The careful use and protection of natural resources like water to prevent waste or overuse.
- 14. The process where liquid water changes into water vapor (gas) due to heat from the sun.
- 15. Water that collects on the surface of Earth, such as in rivers, lakes, or oceans.
- 18. When water overflows onto land that is usually dry, often after heavy rain or rapid snowmelt.
- 22. The land area drained by a river and all its smaller streams and tributaries. (North Carolina has 17 major river basins.)
- 23. All the water on Earth, including oceans, rivers, lakes, groundwater, glaciers, and water vapor in the air.
- 24. Water found in oceans and seas that contains dissolved salts.
- 25. When water is removed from an aquifer faster than it can be replaced.
- 26. An area of land where all the water drains into the same river, lake, or ocean.
- 27. Water that fills the spaces and cracks in rocks and soil beneath Earth’s surface.
Down
- 1. Any form of water that falls from the atmosphere to Earth’s surface, such as rain, snow, sleet, or hail.
- 2. The process of water soaking down from the surface to refill an aquifer.
- 4. The process where water vapor cools and changes back into liquid droplets, forming clouds.
- 6. A layer of rock or sediment that holds and allows water to flow through it underground.
- 7. A scientist who studies water, its movement, and its effects on the environment.
- 8. Land areas that are saturated with water most of the time, like swamps, marshes, or bogs.
- 9. The process where water drops the sediment it was carrying, building up new landforms like deltas.
- 10. A measure of how clean or polluted water is, based on chemical, physical, and biological characteristics.
- 11. The amount of usable freshwater that is accessible for people, plants, and animals.
- 12. Water that flows over Earth’s surface, often into rivers, lakes, or oceans, instead of soaking into the ground.
- 13. The ways human activities (like pollution, farming, and construction) affect water systems.
- 14. The wearing away of soil and rock by moving water.
- 16. The release of water vapor from plant leaves into the atmosphere.
- 17. Rainwater or melted snow that flows over streets and land instead of soaking into the ground.
- 19. A coastal area where freshwater from rivers mixes with saltwater from the ocean.
- 20. The process of water soaking into the ground to become groundwater.
- 21. Water that contains little to no salt; found in rivers, lakes, and streams.