Final answer:
One complete cycle through the atmosphere and back to the ocean includes evaporation, transpiration, condensation, precipitation, runoff, and infiltration processes, together known as the water cycle.
Step-by-step explanation:
A complete cycle through the atmosphere and back to the ocean involves several key processes:
- Evaporation: Solar energy heats the ocean, causing water to turn into vapor and rise into the atmosphere.
- Transpiration: Water is also released into the atmosphere by plants through a process called transpiration.
- Condensation: As water vapor rises, it cools and condenses into clouds.
- Precipitation: Water falls from clouds in the form of rain or snow, returning to the land and bodies of water.
- Runoff: Some of the water on land flows back to the oceans via rivers and streams.
- Infiltration: Some water seeps into the ground, becoming groundwater which can eventually flow back into the ocean.
Together, these processes make up the water cycle, which is driven by solar energy and the force of gravity.