Transpiration

High school (ages 12+)
Science & Technology

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/transpiration

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is Transpiration known for?Significantly impacts atmospheric humidity, cloud formation, and global precipitation patterns
2. What is the scientific principle?Cohesion-tension theory explains water ascent driven by transpiration pull
3. What is the regulatory structures?Stomata, regulated by guard cells, control gas exchange and water vapor loss
4. How does water travel from the roots to the leaves?Water moves up through the plant because the water molecules stick together and the evaporation from the leaf creates a pull that draws more water upward, like a continuous column in the xylem.
5. What controls whether the tiny pores on leaves open or close?The pores, called stomata, are surrounded by guard cells that open or close them depending on light, carbon dioxide, humidity, temperature, and signals from the plant.

Cohesion-Tension Theory: Explains how water moves up plant xylem due to the cohesive forces of water molecules and the tension created by transpiration.
Xylem: The vascular tissue in plants that conducts water and dissolved nutrients upward from the root and also helps to support the plant.
Evapotranspiration: The combined process of evaporation from the Earth's surface and transpiration from plants.