3. Precipitation
Precipitation is the water that falls to Earth´s surface. For precipitation to occur,
water vapor must condense (it must change into a liquid or solid).
This water can fall as rain, snow, sleet, or hail.
In the cloud, some water drops bump into others and stick together. The drops
get bigger. When they get too large to stay up in the air, they fall to Earth as
rain, snow, sleet, or hail.
Some of this precipitation collects in lakes, rivers, and other bodies of water.
Some precipitation soaks into the ground to become groundwater. Some falls
directly back into the ocean.
