1. Evaporation: The sun heats water in oceans, lakes, rivers, and even soil, causing it to evaporate and turn into water vapor.
2. Condensation: This water vapor rises into the atmosphere, cools down, and condenses into tiny water droplets, forming clouds.
3. Precipitation: The water droplets in clouds get heavier and fall back to Earth as rain, snow, sleet, or hail.
4. Collection: The precipitation collects in oceans, lakes, rivers, and underground aquifers. Some of it also soaks into the ground, replenishing groundwater.
This cycle is ongoing, and water molecules are constantly moving through it. This means that any drop of water you see on Earth has likely been through the cycle many times before.