Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1998 05:12:30 -0800
From: Peter Geschke <peterg7@home.com>
To: Pinhole Listserv <pinhole@exploratorium.edu>
Subject: Re: water cycle
This is from a table in Conceptual Physical Science, Hewitt, 1994.
Water Resource Average Residence Times
---------------------------------------------
Atmosphere 1-2 weeks
Shallow Ocean 100-150 years
Deep Ocean 30,000 - 40,000 years
Rivers 2-3 weeks
Lakes 10-100 years
Shallow Groundwater 100's of years
Deep Groundwater 1000's of years
Glaciers 10,000-20,000 years
I have no idea about the percentage of water that's ever been in a living
thing but I'd have to guess 100% since the cycle times aren't that long
compared to the time when living things first appeared.
I hope this was useful.
Peter Geschke
Mission San Jose HS
Fremont, CA 94538
510-657-3600x3528