how do droughts and floods affect the water cycle?
465732
They don't.  The water cycle creates droughts and floods.
848766
It could provide a steady flow of down stream water for crops and farming i.e. never flood and never a drought.\nFloods wipe out crops and crops can't grow without water
1042930
The water cycle — technically known as the hydrologic cycle — is the continuous circulation of water within the Earth's hydrosphere, and is driven by solar radiation. This includes the atmosphere, land, surface water and groundwater. As water moves through the cycle, it changes state between liquid, solid, and gas phases. Water moves from compartment to compartment, such as from river to ocean, by the physical processes of evaporation, precipitation, infiltration, runoff, and subsurface flow. Movement of water within the water cycle is the subject of the field of hydrology.
21135
water on the ground, in oceans, lakes, etc. has enough energy to evaporate a little bit (all liquids have a "vapor pressure," which is higher the hotter it is).  eventually, there is too much water in the air at whatever air temperature it is, so the water re-liquifies and falls.  this can commonly happen when a warm front (warm air holds lots of water) is cooled by a cold front.
889388
I am gonna try.... but I don't know about being the smartest person in the world....\n\n1.......This will speed up the water cycle.  I will start at evaporation as evaporation is accelerated by higher temperatures.  Once there is more evaporated water in the clouds, it will rain quicker.\n\n2............  Hurricanes depend on warm water to give them strength.  Have you ever seen a hurricane in Antarctica?  Warm water contains more kinetic energy.  You know what kinetic energy is..
264265
Based on basic science, observational sensitivity studies and the climate models referenced by the IPCC, temperatures may increase by 1.4 to 5.8 °C between 1990 and 2100 [2]. This is expected to result in other climate changes including rises in sea level and changes in the amount and pattern of precipitation. Such changes may increase the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events such as floods, droughts, heat waves, and hurricanes, change agricultural yields, cause glacier retreat, reduced summer streamflows, or contribute to biological extinctions. Although warming is expected to affect the number and magnitude of these events, it is difficult to connect any particular event to global warming. Much of the evidence is statistical; a significant increase in certain events which is correlated with warming.
204425
Water cycle is enhanced in the tropical area. Why? Higher temperature, more direct sunlight, water evaporates faster (the warmer air can hold more water vaper than cold air w/out condensing).
624441
That answer is true.\n\nThe water table rises & falls in response to rainfall amounts.\n\nWhen there is little rain, the water table will lower thereby affecting the wells in surrounding areas.\n\nOn the flip side, when there are great amounts of rain, the water table will rise. Sometimes the rain is so great that the water table reaches the surface & the ground is saturated.
273633
precipitation and evaporation
338188
The causes of the floods in the Severn Valley in 1998 can be split into two sections: human and physical causes. The human causes of the floods were summed up by the then Shadow Countryside Minister Tim Yeo MP, he said ‘the flooding had increased because of the housing developments on Greenfield sites.’ By this he means that by concreting over the land humans have increased the rate of surface runoff and decreased the saturation levels of the ground. When surface runoff is high rainwater reaches the river faster. It would appear that the speed in which the water reached the river was too fast for the river to handle. The river filled up reaching bank-full discharge and then overflowing its banks onto the flood plain. The flood plain of the River Severn is built on, therefore, when the river floods it floods onto residential areas. With the building of these urban areas the amount of vegetation in the area surrounding the river was reduced, this affects the river two ways. It reduces the amount of interception, which in turn increases the speed of runoff into the river. The lack of vegetation also leads to the saturation of the ground. During the months of October and November the rainfall in the Severn Valley was high, as the water soaked into the ground it became saturated. More vegetation in the area would have meant the vegetation using the water would have decreased the amount of water in ground storage. Physical factors of the flood in 1998 are many; however, the most important one was the amount of rainfall. In October 1998 many areas received record amounts of rainfall caused by a ‘hurricane’. This ‘hurricane’ brought very heavy rain and strong winds. The fact the rain was heavy means that the river did not have time to dissipate the water quick enough and the runoff was too fast, making the river rise t such an extent that it flooded. The area of the river upstream was worst effected, the area drown stream was not so badly effected because the river widens down stream. The saturation of the ground meant that any precipitation after the ground began saturated just added to the floodwaters. Other physical factors include the flat and low-lying nature of the landscape surrounding the Severn. This meant that as the water breached the banks it just spread across the land: \n\n\nNumber of Affected Homesteads - 9,80,571 9. Number of Death - 918 10. Cattle heads killed - 26,564 11. Road Damaged (km)- 15,927 12. Embankment Damaged (km)- 4,528 13. Number of Damaged Bridge /Culverts- 6,890 14. Number of Educational Institutions - 1,718 15. Number of Flood Shelter - 2,716 16. Number of People take refuge - 10,49,525 Bangladesh - Floods OCHA Situation Report The Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief as of 15 September 1998 provided the following update on flood damage: Districts Affected: 52 Thanas affected: 366 Persons affected: 30.6 million Total dead: 783 Crops damaged: 1,497,500 (acres) Houses damaged: 894,015 Roads damaged: 15,900 (km) Embankment damaged: 4,451 (km) Shelters: 2,661 Sheltered people: 1 million
7658
There are several ways that these things can happen.  The droughts can be brought on by increased tempurature.  My geography teacher once showed us infrared pictures of the same area of rainforrest, one before the trees were cut down and one after.  The result was a tempurature increase.  A drought could also be caused becasue a of a decrese in transpiration (process of trees giving off water from their leaves).  As for flooding I don't really know, but errosing increases because there are no longer tree roots to hold the soil together.
411537
The hydrolic cycle is the main cause of erosion.  Rain soaks into the ground.  To much rain can saturate the ground with water, and if there are not enough plants the rain soaked land can be too heavy and you will get mud slides.  Rain also forms runoff in the forms of streams, creeks, rivers and deltas.  Erosion occurs in all these forms of runoff.  It can be good because minerals are pulled from the dirt and redistributed for better farm land.  However erosion can also cause disasters like what happened in New Orleans after Katrina.  Erosion had caused the entire city to sink below sea level, so when the dikes collapsed the water flooded the city.
736855
Types of Flooding\n\nRiver Flooding\nFlooding along rivers is a natural and inevitable part of life. Some floods occur seasonally when winter or spring rains, coupled with melting snoww, fill river basins with too much water too quickly. Torrential rains from decaying hurricanes or tropical systems can also produce river flooding. \n\nCoastal Flooding\nWinds generated from tropical storms and hurricanes or intense offshore low pressure systems can drive ocean water inland and cause significant flooding. Escape routes can be blocked off and blocked by high water. Coastal flooding can also be produced by sea waves called tsunamis, sometimes referred to as tidal waves. These waves are produced by earthquakes or volcanic activity. \n\nUrban Flooding\nAs land is converted from fields or woodlands to roads or parking lots, it loses its ability to absorb rainfall. Urbanization increases runoff 2 to 6 times over what would occur on natural terrain. During periods of urban flooding, streets can become swift moving rivers, while basements can become death traps as they fill with water. \n\nFlash Flooding\nSeveral factors contribute to flash flooding. The two key elements are rainfall intensity and duration. Intensity is the rate of rainfall, and duration is how long the rain lasts. Topography, soil conditions, and ground cover also play an important role.\n\nFlash floods occur within a few minutes or hours of excessive rainfall, a dam or levee failure, or a sudden release of water held by an ice jam. Flash floods can roll boulders, tear out trees, destroy buildings and bridges, and scour out new channels. Rapidly rising water can reach heights of 30 feet or more. Furthermore, flash flood-producing rains can also trigger catastrophic mud slides. You will not always have a warning that these deadly, sudden floods are coming. Most flood deaths are due to FLASH FLOODS.\n\nMost flash flooding is caused by slow-moving thunderstorms, thunderstorms repeatedly moving over the same area, or heavy rains from hurricanes and tropical storms. \n\nFor Flood Safety go here  http://www.nws.noaa.gov/floodsafety/
920899
Runoff is the water that does not saturate the ground but rather enters streams and heads out for lower elevations. Forests and grasslands moderate runoff by securing the soil and preventing it from becoming solute with water and creating erosion.
1078329
Depending on the location of landfall, there can be numerous effects on the environment. In general, you can expect severe damage to trees and plants which will affect wildlife habitat for some time. Plant life is easily defoliated and trees uprooted during high wind/rain events.\n\nAnother possible impact could be pollution to the surface and groundwater. Storm surge and heavy rains can easily cause water treatment plants to overflow and contaminate fresh water sources. Near by agricultural lands could also cause water contamination if the become flooded. Pollution would impact fish and other animals that depend on the fresh water supply.\n\nCoastal areas, including coral reefs and sand quality, are usually devastated by hurricanes too. Damage to corals can cause an imbalance to coastal ocean aquatic life.\n\nThere are many affects of hurricanes on the environment and people, but above just describes a few. Doing a key word search for "coastal hurricane impacts" or "hurricane impact on ecosystem" might give you more information
348038
Yes the water circles down the drain differently in the Southern and Northern hemispheres, as do tornadoes.
417393
Earth's water is always in movement, and the water cycle, also known as the hydrologic cycle, describes the continuous movement of water on, above, and below the surface of the Earth. Since the water cycle is truly a "cycle," there is no beginning or end. Water can change states among liquid, vapor, and ice at various places in the water cycle, with these processes happening in the blink of an eye and over millions of years.\n\nAlthough the balance of water on Earth remains fairly constant over time, individual water molecules can come and go in a hurry. The water in the apple you ate yesterday may have fallen as rain half-way around the world last year or could have been used 100 million years ago by Mama Dinosaur to give her baby a bath.