| A | B |
|---|
| water cycle | evaporation, condensation, precipitation |
| evaporation | heat energy causes water to become a gas called water vapor |
| condensation | water vapor (a gas) cools and becomes liquid. These water droplets form clouds. |
| precipitation | The water droplets in clouds get bigger and heavier and start to fall. |
| weather vane | An instrument used to measure the direction of the wind |
| thermometer | An instument used to measure temperature |
| rain gauge | An instrument used to measure the amount of rainfall. |
| drought | Caused by too little rainfall |
| flood | Caused by too much rainfall |
| temperature | how hot or how cold it is |
| wind | moving air |
| precipitation | the form of water that falls from the clouds, such as rain, sleet, snow, hail, and ice |
| thunderstorms | - brief, intense storms that affect a small area |
| hurricanes | huge, rotating storms formed over the ocean that produce strong winds, heavy rain, and large, powerful waves |
| tornadoes | whirling, violent windstorms accompanied by a funnel cloud that travels a narrow path over land |
| blizzards | a winter storm with strong winds, cold temperatures and snow |
| ice storms | where rain freezes at the Earth’s surface, coating everything with ice |
| cirrus | clouds that are are thin and wispy and are so high in the sky that they contain ice crystals. |
| cumulus | clouds that are white and puffy and can produce rain |
| stratus | clouds that are are in low sheets or layers that can also produce a light, steady rain |
| drizzle | a light, steady rain |
| nimbus | clouds that produce precipitation, they are thick, dark, towering storm clouds |
| cumulonimbus | clouds that warn a thunderstorm is coming or perhaps even a tornado |
