The Water

Most of the earth consists of water, there is much more water than there is land.About 70% of the earth's surface is covered in water. But water also exists in the air as vapour and in aquifers in the soil, as groundwater.The total water supply of the world is 1.400.000.000 km3. (A m3 of water equals 1,000 litres.) Each year, 119.000 km3 of water precipitates on land and 74.200 km3 evaporates into the atmosphere, by evapotranspiration from soil and vegetation. On ocean and sea surface 450.000 km3 of water falls every year and 502.800 km3 evaporates.Of the freshwater on Earth, about 2.200 km3 flows in the ground, mostly within half a mile from the surface. About 135.000 km3 of water can be found in the atmosphere as water vapour, in lakes, soil moisture, marshes and wetlands, rivers, plant and animals. Groundwater and fresh water stored in surface bodies and in the atmosphere represent an available resource of fresh water. Most of the freshwater is stored in glaciers and icecaps, mainly in the Polar Regions and in Greenland, and it is unavailable. This is another 24.500.000 km3 of water, formig the 69.5 % of the total fresh water of the Earth.

How much of the water in earth can be found in oceans?

As oceans are very wide and there are multiple to be found on earth, oceans store most of the earth's water. This is apparently 97% of the total amount of water on earth.

How much fresh water is available?

Of all the water on earth, which is 97,14% of the total amount of surface water, only 2,59% is freshwater. Of this 2,59% another percentage is trapped in ice caps and glaciers, which is about 2%. The rest of the freshwater is either groundwater (0,592%), or readily accessible water in lakes, streams, rivers, etc. (0,014%).