[09-Oct-2009] In this video clip NASA program manager Paula Bontempi narrates the processes of condensation and precipitation in the water cycle, on both a molecular and global scale, using animations and satellite imagery. Condensation is the process by which water vapor molecules cool, stick together, and become liquid again in cloud formation. This often happens high in the atmosphere where the temperature is much lower than it is near the surface. Just like we have currents in the ocean, we have winds in the atmosphere that actually drive what goes on in ocean currents. Materials in the atmosphere can travel a great distance, sometimes a quarter of a way around the world, just until they get to the point where they turn into rain or snow and then fall back to the ocean or land. This is called precipitation. View the full movie produced by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center here.