Planet Earth
General data
- Water type: water.Earth
- Progression:
- Climates:
- Continents:
- Countries:
Description
About 71 percent of the surface is water-covered, and the oceans hold about 96.5 percent of all water. Water also exists in the air as water vapor, in rivers and lakes, in icecaps and glaciers, in the ground as soil moisture and in aquifers, and even in you and your dog. Water is never sitting still. 96.5% of Earth’s water is in the oceans, 2.5% is freshwater, about 1% is salty water in the ground. Freshwater resources are nearly 70% locked up in ice, and most of the rest is in the ground. Only 1.3 % is surficial freshwater, mostly in lakes. Lake Superior is about 10% of Earth’s total surficial fresh water. Two larger lakes are Lake Baikal, which has nearly twice the volume of Lake Superior, and Lake Tanganyika. Both are also located in rift valleys.