What is this simulation?
This is a sealed terrarium shown in a 3D isometric view. Water collects in the low ground, rises as vapor, cools against the upper glass into a cloud band, and falls back down as rain.
What should I try?
- Drag the lamp cord up or down to move the heat source closer or farther.
- Click or tap the lid to open and close the terrarium.
- Drag the round table left or right to rotate the view.
- Turn vegetation up and compare how much water rises from plants.
- Watch the waterline on the glass and the rain streaks as the system cycles.
What to look for
- Light blue particles show evaporation and transpiration.
- The bright cyan line on the glass shows the current water level.
- The pale band near the top marks where condensation is forming.
- Bright rain streaks refill the low areas of the terrain.
- The same water keeps cycling inside the closed system.
Topic
Water cycle, Earth system interactions, and the role of energy in driving matter cycling inside a sealed model system.
Standards Addressed
- NGSS 5-ESS2-1 — Develop a model to describe ways the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact.
Key Concepts
- Energy as the driver: The lamp is the only energy source. Bringing it closer increases evaporation.
- Sealed system: Water stays in the terrarium and cycles repeatedly.
- Condensation band: The cloud-height export is a proxy for how far downward the visible condensation zone has spread from the lid.
- Vegetation and transpiration: Dense vegetation adds water vapor through transpiration, which amplifies the water cycle — more plants means faster cloud buildup and more frequent precipitation events. Bare terrain removes transpiration entirely, leaving only surface evaporation to drive the cycle. This models the real-world connection between deforestation and reduced regional rainfall, making the vegetation slider a direct way to explore NGSS biosphere–hydrosphere interaction.
Controls
- Lamp: Drag the lamp cord up/down (or use Arrow Up/Down keys when canvas has focus).
- Lid: Click or tap the lid glass to open/close (or press Space/Enter).
- View: Drag the round table left/right (or use Arrow Left/Right keys).
- Vegetation: Use the slider to adjust plant density (or hide with
?hideVeg=1).
Data Export
Collect Data sends a time series with: case, time (s), sealed status, water level (%), evaporation rate (%), cloud height (%), and precipitation rate (events/min).