• Where does water come from?
• How did tide water get its name?
• Where did estuaries get their name from?
• How long does it take for steam to disappear from the mirror after a shower or bath?
• How did H2O get its name?
• How can I prove or test what is in our drinking water?
• How does water get into the air?
• How does water get out of the edwards aquifer?
• Where does the Edwards Aquifer get its water?
• How did the Edwards Aquifer get its name?
• What is in our drinking water?
• How much does the average household (4 people) pay for monthly water bill?
• How big is the Edwards Aquifer?
• Where does our water come from?
• How much water can the aquifer hold?

Great question Peter. Water surrounds us. It is in the air as rain, ice, snow, steam and fog. It is in lakes, streams, rivers, oceans and glaciers.  But this water really isn't new at all. In fact, at this very moment, we have all the water we will ever have or ever have had. No new water is being manufactured. This recycling process is called the water cycle.  The Water Cycle takes place in the hydrosphere, a region containing all the water in the atmosphere and on the surface of the Earth. The process occurs through five vital stages: Condensation, Precipitation, Infiltration, Runoff and Evaporation/Transpiration.

Condensation- When the Earth's air cools enough, water vapor condenses on particles in the air to form clouds. Clouds are then moved across the globe by winds which spread water vapor across the planet.

Precipitation- As the clouds become warmer and are "heavy" with vapor, they release this moisture to Earth in the form of precipitation, which can be snow, rain, hail or sleet.

Infiltration, Runoff, Evaporation/Transpiration- The next three stages occur simultaneously after precipitation falls to the ground.

Infiltration happens when precipitation seeps into the ground recharging shallow water tables and deep aquifers. The amount of infiltration depends heavily on the permeability of the ground. The more permeable the surface is, the more precipitation seeps into the ground. However, if precipitation occurs faster than it can infiltrate the ground, it becomes runoff.

Runoff is precipitation that remains on the surface of the Earth flowing into streams, rivers and eventually large bodies of water such as lakes or oceans.

Evaporation/Transpiration begins when the power of the sun (heat) changes the liquid water to a vapor. As the liquid heats, molecules are released and changed into a gas. Warm air rises up into the atmosphere and becomes vapor. Transpiration occurs when plants release water vapor through their leaves and into the atmosphere. Once the vapor enters the atmosphere, the entire water cycle begins again.

Great question Alina.

The word "tide" comes from an old English word meaning time of high or low water. Hope this helps.    

Wow. What a great question! The process where water collects (or condenses) on the mirror in your bathroom is very similar to what happens during a process called the water cycle. The water coming from your shower can get so hot that it evaporates and turns into water vapor in the form of steam. If the door to your bathroom is closed, this steam floats around your bathroom until it comes into contact with the cold mirror. When it does, the vapor begins turning back into tiny liquid water drops condensing on your cold mirror and making it wet. When you open the bathroom door and cool air rushes in, most of the steam and water on your mirror begins to evaporate quickly until eventually it  disappears all together. So, the length of time it make take for the steam to disappear on your mirror may vary from shower to shower and house to house.       

Thanks for the question Lesly. You can test your drinking water by taking a sample from your faucet and taking it to a local lab for testing. There are many community labs that will test this water for you for a small fee. You might check with the local health department about testing options.

Of course, it also depends on what you are testing the water for. There are many educational companies out there who will sell you drinking water test kits that you can do right at home. Of course, it might not test everything you are looking for.

If you want to get more information about this, you can always call the staff of the SAWS H2O University at 210-233-3631 for more help.

Have a great  day!

Cactus Callie   

Great question Ruben. Water surrounds us. It is in the air as rain, ice, snow, steam and fog. It is in lakes, streams, rivers, oceans and glaciers.  But this water really isn?t new at all. In fact, at this very moment, we have all the water we will ever have or ever have had. No new water is being manufactured. This recycling process is called the water cycle.  The Water Cycle takes place int he hydrosphere, a region containing all the water in the atmosphere and on the surface of the Earth. The process occurs through five vital stages: Condensation, Precipitation, Infiltration, Runoff and Evaporation/Transpiration.

Condensation- When the Earth?s air cools enough, water vapor condenses on particles in the air to form clouds. Clouds are then moved across the globe by winds which spread water vapor across the planet.

Precipitation- As the clouds become warmer and are "heavy" with vapor, they release this moisture to Earth in the form of precipitation, which can be snow, rain, hail or sleet.

Infiltration, Runoff, Evaporation/Transpiration- The next three stages occur simultaneously after precipitation falls to the ground.

Infiltration happens when precipitation seeps into the ground recharging shallow water tables and deep aquifers. The amount of infiltration depends heavily on the permeability of the ground. The more permeable the surface is, the more precipitation seeps into the ground. However, if precipitation occurs faster than it can infiltrate the ground, it becomes runoff.

Runoff is precipitation that remains on the surface of the Earth flowing into streams, rivers and eventually large bodies of water such as lakes or oceans.

Evaporation/Transpiration begins when the power of the sun (heat) changes the liquid water to a vapor. As the liquid heats, molecules are released and changed into a gas. Warm air rises up into the atmosphere and becomes vapor. Transpiration occurs when plants release water vapor through their leaves and into the atmosphere. Once the vapor enters the atmosphere, the entire water cycle begins again.

Pumpage accounts for the next largest amount of discharge. The largest entities that pump water from the aquifer are municipal suppliers. Urban residents and industries in Comal, Hays, and Bexar County are the biggest users.  For example,  San Antonio Water System (SAWS) drills deep wells into the Artesian zone of the aquifer and puts pumps in most of them.  In certain places where there is enough artesian pressure, some of the water is forced to the surface through several of SAWS? wells.   In addition, significant amounts of water are pumped by ranchers and farmers from wells used for agricultural irrigation throughout the region. 

An average 304,000 acre-feet of water is used for ranching, irrigation, municipal, and industrial purposes each year.  The remaining 364,000 acre feet of natural recharge is discharge In Uvalde and Median counties, water is used chiefly for irrigation. 

Kaity,

The Edwards Aquifer receives its water when it rains over an area that we call the Recharge Zone. The Recharge Zone is made up of cracks and caves in the Earth and when it rains there, this water flows into these "recharge features" and down into the Edwards. That is why it is so important to have rain in the San Antonio area to keep our aquifer filled. For more information about the Edwards Aquifer, click right here, http://www.saws.org/our_water/

Thanks for your question Kaity!  

Wow T.C that is a pretty tough question. Luckily, I have the answer for you or better yet, can tell you where to go and find the answer. On our SAWS web site, we have a section called Our Water. If you click on to this area, it will take you to a place called What's in our Water. You will find your answer there.

Thanks for the questions and keep them coming.

W