Types of rain and how precipitation is distributed around the world

Arab Weather - Temperature and air humidity are among the main determinants of the characteristics of raindrops that fall on the ground, and on the other hand, wind patterns and topography control precipitation, and these factors can combine to produce rain in the form of light drizzle, or heavy rain Or even a snowstorm, and rain can be classified into four main types depending on these factors.

Types of rain

The movement of hot and cold air masses relative to each other is mainly responsible for the different precipitation patterns that occur around the world, and there are several reasons that determine the movement of air masses, such as the topography of the earth, or the monsoons, and accordingly there are many types of rain, which are:

1. Conventional rain (Conventional Rainfall): air naturally rises when heated, and when it reaches higher altitudes cools, can not be cold air retain moisture as much warm air, so condense the moisture in the known clouds as the cumulus clouds, and in the end, become clouds laden with drops Water is the size that causes it to fall in the form of rain, and this can happen on land or over water as long as moisture is present, and when it occurs over tropical oceans, where the air is saturated with water vapor, and the intense heat that causes strong upward currents, this combination of winds can lead And humidity will indicate a tropical storm or hurricane .

2 . Rain morphologies (Orographic Rainfall): When the air moisture - laden mountain range falls, the air is forced to rise, Viberd in higher elevations, and this causes Petkatv water vapor in the air and the occurrence of precipitation, and if the temperature is cold enough, it may be precipitation in the form of Snow

3. Frontal Rainfall : The area where a large mass of cold air meets a large mass of warm air is called the forehead, and this convergence creates disturbances at the forehead, as the warm air rises above the cold air and cools, so the water vapor condenses and forms large clouds, Thunderstorms accompanied by lightning usually occur in the front area, and the resulting precipitation can last from a few minutes to an hour or more .

4. Monsoonal Rainfall : The combination of the sun's heat and the rotation of the earth leads to the emergence of a belt of eastern winds at 30 latitude north and south of the equator, so that these winds blow throughout the year, but change their direction with the seasons, this seasonal shift is responsible for precipitation Monsoons in India, Southeast Asia and elsewhere .

Global distribution of precipitation

• Different places on the Earth's surface receive different amounts of precipitation in a year, in different seasons, and in general, when moving from the equator towards the poles, the precipitation decreases steadily.

• Coastal areas of the world receive more rain than the interior of the continents. The world's oceans receive more rain than land because they are large sources of water.

• Between the latitudes of 35 ° and 40 ° north and south of the equator, the rain is heavier on the eastern coasts and continues to decrease towards the west, but between 45 ° and 65 ° north and south of the equator, due to the westerly winds, the western edges of the continents receive rain first, and the rain decreases in the direction Towards the east.

• When the mountains run parallel to the coast, the rain is greater on the coastal plain, so that precipitation usually occurs on the windward side of the mountains, and decreases on the other side.

• The equatorial belt, the slopes of the mountains along the western coasts in the cold temperate zone, and the coastal areas of the monsoon land receive abundant rainfall of more than 200 cm annually.

• The interior (continental) regions receive moderate rainfall of 100-200 cm annually, the coastal regions of the continents receive a moderate amount of precipitation.

• Rainfall rates in the central parts of the tropical lands and the eastern and inland parts of the temperate lands range between 50-100 cm per year.

• Areas in the rain shadow zone in the interior of the continents and high latitudes receive very low amounts of precipitation - less than 50 cm per year.