Band 9: The diagram below shows the water cycle, which is the continuous movement of water on, above and below the surface of the Earth. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

The given process is an illustration of how the water cycle takes place in nature.

Overall, water takes on many forms throughout the process, going from ocean water to gas and gas to freshwater before returning to the ocean again. The image also shows that water is an essential resource that supports life on land as well as in the sea.

Initially, water evaporates from the ocean upon exposure to sunlight, reaching the atmosphere. It then forms clouds at a certain altitude and temperature and travels to mountainous regions. This is where clouds condense into liquid and make their way to the ground in the form of rain. Rainwater then mixes with snowmelt from snow-capped mountains, creating a body of water such as a lake.

At this point, water in the lake permeates deeper into the ground to be absorbed by the roots of vegetation, ultimately returning to the atmosphere through a process called transpiration. Alternatively, lake water forms a passage as groundwater, making its way back to the ocean and resetting the cycle