what is water cycle
The water cycle. The water cycle is the process that re-circulates water so we can have bodies of water as well as clouds and precipitation. The first step of the water cycle is evaporation. About 85% of the water vapor in the air comes from water that evaporated from the oceans. The other 15% comes from evapotranspiration, which is a catch-all term for water that evaporates from over land.