Causes of rain. Why is it raining? Why is it raining

Why is it raining? It is unlikely that a person will begin to ask this question if the sky frowned outside the window, the first drops fell from it, but you urgently need to leave the house. In this case, people just take an umbrella and go about their business. But it is quite possible in moments of leisure, philosophizing and contemplation

think about why it rains. There are many constant processes going on in nature. One of them - its main participants: liquids of various kinds and the sun.

The luminary not only illuminates the earth, but also warms it. Water, heating up, passes into another state - gaseous. Water vapor rises. The higher the vapor rises, the colder the air surrounds them. Molecules under these circumstances, in the process of condensation, are converted into crystals, which, accumulating, form clouds and clouds. When they gain a large mass, there is a violation of their stability. Cloud clusters are no longer able to hold water, and drops begin to fall out of them. That's why it rains.

The water that falls on the surface of the earth either evaporates again, or seeps into the ground, or immediately enters the reservoir. In any case, the evaporation process starts again. It is infinite and, like everything ingenious, simple.

It is usually determined by the temperature regime in the subcloud layer, the height of the clouds and their structure. As a rule, clouds that bring precipitation have a mixed composition: ice crystals and drops of cold water. Falling down from the total mass, this mixture is transformed in conditions of either warm or frosty air. If the temperature of the subcloud layer is positive, then raindrops reach the ground. If the parameters are negative, snow falls on the ground.

The lower layers of the atmosphere also play a role. If in summer clouds form very high above the ground, in conditions of negative temperature, then the main composition of the mass consists of ice crystals. This means that snow flies out of the cloud into the subcloud layer. But when passing through warm air, snowflakes melt. Then hail falls on the ground. If they manage to melt completely, then drops of water. That's why it's snowing, raining, hail.

In the summer - every student will answer this question. Because it's warm. Why does it rain in winter? It happens that atmospheric phenomena occur with a deviation (for various reasons) from the normal course of events. For example, in winter, warm cloud clusters formed in a tropical region over the ocean or sea can enter mid-latitudes. In this case, a thaw begins, the previously fallen snow melts, and instead of snowflakes, rain falls on the ground.

This also happens in the summer. Masses of cold air are breaking through from the Arctic. Warm is pushed aside, but at the same time it forms with powerful cloudiness. Precipitation can be extremely heavy. At first it rains, then as the air cools, hail or sleet can fall. These precipitations can fall without cooling, but always in the presence of powerful clouds. If the front hangs over a certain area, the temperature of the atmosphere will drop even more, then real snow will fall on the ground.

I asked my mom this question when I was 5 years old. We then rested on a forest lake. The weather was wonderful and I didn't get out of the water. But, one day, the weather deteriorated sharply - it started to rain. It poured straight from the clear sky. I had to get out of the water. I was very upset then and asked my mother: “Why did it rain?”. She answered my childish question very seriously.

Why is it raining

It turns out that this happens when water vapor immediately enters a cold air stream. There it cools and turns into droplets. This summer rain is called "blind". Its drops are warm and large. And in autumn, on the contrary, the rain splashes like cologne from a spray bottle. Why? Because the autumn air is already cold and the ice floes, forming at a high altitude, then, falling down, melt more slowly. And they merge with each other more lazily. So it turns out cold, drizzling, "dank" rain. Often before the rain you can see how the white clouds gather into one big dark cloud. It is dark because it contains such a large amount of moisture that it does not let in sunlight. Sometimes, individual drops freeze due to low temperatures. They fall down with the raindrops - goes hail.


Causes of rain

The science that studies different types of precipitation is called meteorology. She singled out 4 main reasons to make rain:

  • warm moist air rises. The warmer the air, the more moisture it holds;
  • there must be enough moisture in the water vapor to then become rain;
  • meeting of warm air masses with cold air masses. This is called an "atmospheric front". The greater the difference in their temperatures, the stronger the rain;
  • the presence of mountains and hills. At the top of the mountain, the temperature drops, and the moisture turns into clouds, which then rain.

Our conversation by the lake continued at home. We decided to arrange The water cycle. They took a pot of water, put it on the fire and waited. Very soon, steam began to rise and settle on the lid of the pan in the form of droplets. The drops merged and fell down to rise again in the form of vapor upwards. And so it happened again and again. It was raining in the pot.

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It just so happened that I was born in St. Petersburg - a city that is famous throughout Russia for its rainy weather. Someone who, but I know everything about the rains. And about how cold drops gently stroke your face, and about why they roll down on us from the sky at all - that is, why is it raining at all.


What is rain and where does it come from

We all know perfectly well that the planet we live on has a very large water shell. It:

  • Rivers.
  • Seas.
  • Oceans.
  • Lakes.

And many other reservoirs of different sizes.


It often seems to us that the water does not disappear from them, but in fact it is not. All water on Earth is exposed to solar heat evaporates, filling the atmosphere with tiny droplets.


The wind collects them in heaps - clouds. There the droplets unite getting heaviere- and go down. This phenomenon is called rain.

Why is it cloudy when it rains

You must have noticed: almost always, when it rains, the sky is darkening and the sun is hiding. In fact, it is simply blocked by clouds - large and dark. The ones that store future raindrops.

There are so many of them that the rays of the sun cannot penetrate through such a barrier. That is why clouds appear so dark to us – we call them clouds. For the same reason and the weather becomes cloudy.


We also have a little rain

The most interesting thing is that the rain carries a part of each of us. Every animal, plant and even human.

The fact is that in living organisms to some extent or me water is present. When the Sun heats us up, it is very important to cool down in time.

In animals and humans, thermoregulation occurs with the help of sweat - small droplets of liquid protrude through the pores to the surface of the skin - and under the influence of the Sun they also evaporate eventually returning to earth as precipitation.


Why does it rain most often in autumn?

In fact, this is not true at all. Scientists analyzed the frequency of rainfall - and it turned out that in summer they go even more often! And the rainiest month on average in Russia is June.

And other countries have their rainy seasons - in Vietnam, for example, it lasts from May to November.


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For me rain - boats in the puddles, rubber boots and colorful rainbow. Without rain unthinkable life on our planet. The rain brings sedation, of course, if you don't have to get wet under it at the bus stop :(


What is rain

Clouds, visible to us in the sky, are concentration of tiny particles of water that were raised from the ground after evaporation. These particles are so microscopic that are in a state free float in the air. Happening in the clouds circulation of cold and warm streams air, which carry moisture particles with them. Those particles, what bigger and are in the middle layers of the cloud, are moving updraft in upper layer. There temperature below, and cooled droplets go down, attracting more small. This movement continues until drops not become heavier so much that they can no longer be raised, and then, under the influence of their own masses, drops rush down, turning into rain.


However, not always rain has this nature. Similarly, precipitation forms only in tropics. AT our area, due to climatic features, the temperature in the upper layers of the cloud almost always below zero. Thus, when hitting the top layer, particles turn into microscopic ice crystals. Over time, from crystals snowflakes are forming. Thanks to all the same forces, snowflakes fall down, while passing warm layers of the atmosphere turn into droplets and then outside the window we see rain.


What are the rains

Rain- one of the most familiar to man weather manifestations. He happens long-awaited, dangerous, useful, soothing. There are several types of rain:

  • blind;
  • thunderstorm;
  • hail;
  • snow;
  • bathing;
  • shower;
  • drizzling;
  • strip;
  • oblique;
  • sieve;
  • mushroom.

Using a figurative meaning, one can also mention such a phenomenon as meteor Rain- combustion of several, and sometimes more than a hundred meteorite bodies at the same time.


Precipitation measurement

Rain is one of the varieties precipitation. To analyze the amount of precipitation, meteorologists collect raindrops in special cylinders. The thickness of the water in millimeters will be the value indicating rainfall. AT Moscow rainfall throughout the year reaches 670 mm., and in South America, in desert Atacama, the average is equal to 0.1 mm. The rainiest place on earth is Kauai included in the group Hawaiian Islands. Here the level reaches 11750 mm. It's hard to believe, but in the year there 350 days of heavy rains.


How do clouds disperse

In reality, clouds do not accelerate, but create conditions for precipitation fell at a considerable distance from a place where a good clear weather. To do this, from the leeward side, from aircraft, they spray granular dry ice or silver iodide crystals. Upon entering the cloud, the reagent forms a snowflakeand, water crystallizes, and it starts to rain.

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Questions like this begin to worry the child at an early age. I remember how, being small and getting wet in the rain, I asked my grandmother "what is it?" and "where does water come from in the sky?", and she tried to explain all this to me on her fingers. Already at school, I received a more detailed answer to my question from teachers. Now I'm trying to be a teacher. So, let's talk about what rain is and where it comes from.


The water cycle in nature

Just as a person sweats profusely on a hot day, so As the earth warms, moisture evaporates. Rising up and gradually cooling the water vapor condenses into clouds, first in them small droplets are collected and held in the atmosphere by air resistance, but the further those drops become heavier and heavier. Having reached a certain critical mass, they can't be held in the cloud and fall to the ground as precipitation. Depending on environmental conditions, several types of precipitation can form:

  • Rain.
  • Snow. At negative temperatures, water vapor rising up can bypass the liquid stage and immediately turn into solid snowflakes, which, falling lower, gradually melt and take the form of snow we are used to.
  • Grad. When evaporated moisture rises too high, into the upper atmosphere, at sub-zero temperatures, it can crystallize. Crystals of frozen water have a lot of weight and it is quite difficult for them to stay in the cloud. In this case, we see the fall of "hard rain" or simply "hail".

  • The rain caused weather forecasts to appear on the radio. Once the owner of a popular American radio stations was outside when it was raining and after that he ordered to establish new rubric in which they will tell about the possibility of rain several times a day.
  • hot Botswana and South Africa's national currency is called "rain".
  • Approximately one person in a million is allergic to rain. When hit under water, a person turns red and becomes covered with spots, if timely assistance is not provided, he may even die.
  • in 1986, hail fell from the sky from the weight of one hailstone more than a kilogram, then 92 people died from this phenomenon.

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At school, they briefly explained to us why it rains. So fluently that the weak brain of the second graders could not master such a quick, short and at the same time clever explanation. From that explanation, I only remember that this is part of " water cycle". Then we all the class (or rather, only those who were interested) went to the library, took, as I remember now, the Scrabble encyclopedia and began to search. Now I'll try to retell everything that I remember from that moment, well, I'll season it with current knowledge, which are also many.


Why does it rain

First you need to understand why it rains and where the water for rain comes from. Water is taken from steam - clouds. It gets there when the sun heats the surface of the earth / water bodies and moisture from these surfaces evaporates, the steam later rises and collects in clouds in the sky. In addition to water from the surface of the earth, there are evaporations from living objects. People sweat, just excess water evaporate and are taken out of since and stomata plants too evaporate excess water. All this water goes to rain.


rain gear

Let's look at a few mechanisms. The first:

  1. In the sky due to the cold temperature of the steam condenses into light droplets, which are still not heavy enough to fall.
  2. Drops are moving in the sky chaotically.
  3. Sometimes they face and merge into larger.
  4. Larger droplets much heavier than the original ones and therefore they are under the influence of gravity fall down.
  1. Low temperature in stock high humidity makes condense steam in more large droplets.
  2. These droplets too heavy to soar in the clouds.
  3. Drops under the influence of attraction fall down and rain down on the ground.

As can be easily seen, in this case there is no chaotic motion of drops.

Third mechanism:

meet in the sky warm air masses and cold air masses. Cold air cools warm and further two ways. According to the first the air is not very cold and he starts condense and are formed raindrops that fall down. The second way - the air cools so much that the drops freeze and it snows.


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The world is full of a wide variety of phenomena, and in ancient times, many of them were considered a real miracle. What can I say about the ancients, if I myself thought so in childhood. When I grew up, I learned more about the world around me, and the rain from an unusual miracle for me became just a natural phenomenon.


What did the ancient Slavs say about rain?

Myths and legends were formed by our ancestors for centuries. Plots were most often based on phenomena that were considered mystical. Today, hardly anyone will agree that rain is a message from higher powers. The rain was both a punishment and a salvation for people: if it rained in a dry year, the people thanked heaven for their mercy, and if it rained without stopping, they were angry at the sent punishment.


Modern rain science

Rain is a long process. The clouds that we see every day in the sky contain water droplets that are in constant motion. In the cloud itself, the droplets "meet" each other and form larger drops. How do these droplets get into the clouds? Very simple: The sun warms the water on the surface:

  • ocean;
  • seas;
  • rivers;
  • puddles.

Water begins to evaporate and rise gradually upwards, forming those same clouds. It is difficult to think that such a miracle can be so simply explained.

What is acid rain

Acid rain is an extremely unpleasant thing and it is best never to encounter such a phenomenon. Such rain is any precipitation that has arisen as a result of air pollution with nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides and other acidic oxides. How does acid rain appear? Basically, you can say “thank you” for such a negative phenomenon to various enterprises producing cars, heat and electricity.


Places on Earth where they don't know about rain

Many scientists believe that there are no such places. Even in the hottest deserts, at least once a year and at least a couple of minutes there will be a little rain. But there is the wettest place on the planet: the village of Mosinram in India. It does not rain there every day without stopping, but the annual rainfall makes people recognize that in this area there will be no need to suffer from water shortages.

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We have all had the opportunity to watch rain at least once in our lives. Whether it is small, slightly dripping, or torrential, generously watering nature. Let's try to explain why it rains? Rain is the name given to precipitation that falls from clouds in the form of water droplets.


Rain comes in different forms

Rain can be barely noticeable, but it can be, on the contrary, torrential, frightening. Kinds:

  • drizzling;
  • showers;
  • "blind";
  • "dry".

More than once I watched how lightly dripping raindrops smoothly turned into a light rain, which eventually ended in a heavy downpour, and sometimes even hail. We all know from school that rain drops have a diameter up to 0.5 millimeters. If they are smaller in diameter, then such precipitation is called drizzle rather than rain.


So why does it rain?

For it to rain, you need a cloud of ice crystals or tiny drops of water, well, or both. The heaviest rains come precisely when a mixture of crystals is present in the cloud ice and drops water.


At first, the water droplets in the cloud resemble water dust. Such droplets-dust particles move upward, and when the flow weakens, they begin to fall very slowly - at a speed of 1-2 centimeters per second. Further water flow drives up and all cloud. And since the air temperature drops every 100 meters, the droplets gradually turn into the smallest pieces of ice. The most interesting is just beginning... Ice floes and droplets collide with each other, merge or freeze, become heavier and finally rush to the ground. On the way, the ice floes melt and fall to the ground already in the form of drops. It happens that in cloudsNoice floes, then a small one falls to the ground, like from a sieve, drizzling rain.


Shower

Downpour we used to call rain of such force when it falls in a minute more than one millimeterprecipitation. But this indicator is even higher.

"Blind Rains"

When the sun is shining and not a cloud is visible, a haze appears overhead. On the ground spank loudly large drops. Water vapor does not have time to gather into a cloud, as a stream of cold air rushed over them.

Having figured it out why is it raining we understand how multifaceted and amazing nature is, how it properly manages its resources giving us these gifts!

Answer from Oksana[guru]
The sun warms the water in the ocean, in the sea, in the river, in any puddle.
Water evaporates, turns into transparent vapor and rises upward, where warm air currents carry it along, because warm air is lighter than cold air, it always tends to rush upward.
Light water vapor rises higher and higher from the earth heated by the sun, it climbs high, where it is constantly, even on the hottest summer day, very cold, like in winter.
The steam is warm, and when it touches cold air, it turns into tiny droplets of water.
The droplets are as light as fluff, they stay in the air perfectly, they float and move all the time, because everyone pushes them; new and new currents of warm air rising from the ground.
Warm air throws droplets even higher, cold air drags them down; so they fly, tiny travelers, up and down; they dance, merge together, become larger.
There are very, very many of them, and together they form a cloud.
In the upper part of the cloud, the droplets freeze - it is very cold there; they turn into ice floes, grow, become heavier, so they can no longer stay in the cloud and fall down. And when they fall, they melt, because it is much warmer below; again become droplets of water, merge together - and it rains on the earth.
It's raining because water
Constantly striving for the ground.
Because it's already cold
And in heaven, someone can not sleep.
Because falling in love with you
I got lost among the three pines,
Because, not loving the heat,
A sad autumn has come.
The author of the poems, unfortunately I do not know who ...

Answer from Elena Maksimova[newbie]
When heavy black clouds gather in the sky, people say: "It will rain." Most of the time it actually starts. But where did the clouds come from, and why does it rain from them? The reason for all this is the Sun. It heats the surface of the planet and the waters in the oceans, lakes and rivers turn into steam. It mixes with air.
Rising warm air spreads water vapor in the atmosphere. Cooling down, the air gives up part of its load, and the invisible water vapor again becomes water. Clouds form from its droplets. This process, which is opposite to evaporation, is called condensation. Inside the cloud, tiny droplets gradually grow, collecting more and more moisture. Finally, the drops become so large that they can no longer be held up by air currents and fall to the ground in the form of rain.
Evaporation continues throughout the day. Water vapor rises into the atmosphere. But in order for it to turn into clouds, consisting of the smallest droplets, solid particles are also needed, on the surface of which the vapor could condense. If there are no or very few dust particles or ice crystals in the air, condensation may not occur.
This is how events unfold on a warm summer day, when the sun shines in the bright sky in the morning, and in the afternoon clouds gather and rain falls on the ground, sometimes heavy, but short downpour. These are local rains. The rains are long, lingering, for two or three days, or even for a week, powerful air whirlwinds - cyclops - are brought from afar. The inhabitants of the European plain are showered with water that has evaporated from the surface of the Atlantic Ocean. By determining the speed of the cyclone, meteorologists can predict the time of the onset of rainy weather.
Have you ever wondered why it rains? Who is crying there in the sky? Maybe there is someone bad at this moment? So bad that you can't hold back your tears. And they drip onto the ground, breaking off the cheeks of an angel sitting on a gloomy gray cloud ... Do you know why there is different rain? In summer, the angels are happy, and their tears appear only from happiness. Therefore, such rain falls when the sun shines. And it reflects in their eyes. And from these glare, a rainbow is obtained.
And by autumn, the angels begin to feel sad, they cry more and more often and hide their eyes in the clouds... Then the tears fall to the ground sadly, quietly... This is the autumn rain. In winter, angels begin to feel sad without love... And tears, falling from their eyes down to the ground, turn into snowflakes, cold, prickly... Here they are... different rains...
Source: link


Answer from Vitaly Noroh[newbie]
water evaporates, water drips. simple


Answer from User deleted[active]
and in the high layers of the atmosphere, steam condenses into water and falls to the ground - everything is simple


Answer from Anna[guru]
Rain is the result of a complex and lengthy process involving the sun, earth and air. First, the earth is warmed by the sun. As a result, the water of the oceans, seas, lakes, as well as the moisture contained in the soil, turn into water vapor. This vapor is then mixed with air. This is how the evaporation process goes.
And then, along with lighter warm air, water vapor rises high into the sky, where they cool and turn into clouds. This process is called condensation.
What happens next with the water vapor inside the clouds. The smallest droplets of water contained in the clouds gradually grow, absorbing more and more moisture. Finally, the drops become so heavy that the air currents are unable to hold them, and they fall to the ground in the form of rain. That's why it's raining.
The process of water evaporation takes place almost around the clock, and water vapor rises. But it doesn't rain every day. Far from always invisible vapors turn into visible raindrops. This is because a certain surface is required for the condensation process to take place. If there are few or practically no dust particles in the air, then condensation does not occur. Snowflakes and ice crystals that are high in the clouds contribute to the condensation process.
If warm and cold air currents collide in the atmosphere, it will most likely lead to rain. Warm air contains a lot of moisture, which is cooled by cold air currents. Invisible vapors turn into heavy drops of water, which fall to the ground.

After the director of one of the American radio stations got wet to the skin, falling under the autumn rain, the program "Weather Forecast" appeared on the air, which had not previously existed. The information turned out to be relevant, because it will never be superfluous to find out whether it is worth taking an umbrella today and whether you need to leave the house, since, for example, in Portugal, rain and wind are a good reason not to show up for work.

Rain is one of the types of precipitation that falls mainly from nimbostratus and altostratus clouds in the form of water droplets with a diameter of 0.5 to 7 mm. Rain usually comes from mixed clouds containing supercooled droplets or ice crystals.

Raindrops fall when small spherical water particles coalesce into larger ones, or when they freeze to an ice crystal. Unlike the generally accepted opinion, they do not have the shape of a teardrop, since they are flattened on the underside due to the pressure of the oncoming air flow.

At first, these droplets are light enough that the air allows them to remain in the cloud. Since inside the cloud they are constantly moving and colliding with each other, merging and increasing in size, they begin to gradually sink down, continuing to increase. This process continues until the water particles gain the required mass, enabling them to overcome air resistance and shed raindrops on the ground.

If water particles are in clouds, inside which the temperature is high enough not to turn into ice crystals, the droplets merge with each other constantly and extremely intensively. It does not rain as often from them as from clouds, inside which the temperature is below zero: in order to fall out of the cloud, ice crystals gain the necessary mass quite quickly.

If at this time there is a very high difference in temperature between the cloud and the earth's surface, then the frozen crystals melt before reaching the earth's surface - and raindrops fall on the ground (the largest drops are obtained when hail melts).

Interestingly, the larger the raindrops, the stronger the rain, but usually it passes rather quickly. The speed of such precipitation can be from 9 to 30 m/s (this is usually typical for summer or spring rain). But if the raindrops turn out to be small, then such precipitation can last for several days or even weeks - water flies to the ground "slowly", at a speed of 2 to 6.6 m / s, which is typical for autumn rains.

Precipitation intensity

One of the important indicators of the amount of precipitation in nature is the fixation of the intensity of rain - the volume of raindrops falling in a certain time.

Rainwater depth is usually measured in millimeters: one millimeter of water is equal to one kilogram of raindrops per square meter (precipitation rate typically ranges from 1.25 mm/h to 100 mm/h). Given the amount of precipitation that falls over a certain period of time, light, moderate and heavy rain are distinguished.

Heavy rainfall

At a speed of 2.5 mm/h, light rain falls regardless of the time of the year at positive temperatures in temperate and high latitudes from dark altostratus, stratonimbus and cumulonimbus clouds. Heavy precipitation lasts from several hours to several weeks and covers a vast territory. If precipitation of this type is prolonged, then they quite often harm nature: the humidity in the atmosphere increases greatly, and plants begin to rot due to oversaturation with moisture.

Drizzling precipitation

Moderate rains come at a speed of 2.5 to 8 mm/h in the form of small droplets from stratus and stratocumulus clouds. These precipitations do not last long, from several hours to two days, their amount is minimal, and therefore the rain does not have a negative impact on nature.


heavy rainfall

Heavy precipitation is heavy rain with wind, which often falls in temperate latitudes, usually in the warm season. Such heavy rain is characterized by a high rate of precipitation (more than 8 mm/h) and a short duration, no more than a few hours. The exception is May rain, which can last up to three days, as well as heavy rainfall in tropical and equatorial latitudes. The rainy season here often lasts several months, and heavy rain pours almost non-stop with an intensity of 25-30 mm / min.

It should be noted that a thunderstorm often accompanies heavy rain, so in such weather it is better to take shelter in order to avoid accidents. Interestingly, the occurrence of a thunderstorm is directly related to the Sun - in the middle latitudes, such a natural phenomenon can be observed in the afternoon and very rarely before dawn.


In Europe, the heaviest rain fell on the territory of Germany in the twenties of the last century, when its rates were 15.5 mm / min. As for the heaviest precipitation on a planetary scale, on the lands of Guadeloupe, rain was recorded with an intensity of 38 mm / min.

Heavy rain is often accompanied by thunderstorms and heavy winds, which causes significant harm to both nature and humans. The consequences of such rain and wind are often landslides, floods, soil erosion. Such weather conditions can cause death of a person, as well as cause an ecological disaster. When it comes to heavy rain, it is not so much its duration that is important, but its intensity: the more drops fall, the more detrimental the consequences will be.

rainy season

There are areas on Earth where the most precipitation falls. This phenomenon is known as the "rainy season" and can be observed in tropical and subtropical latitudes. The closer to the equator the rainy season, the more prolonged precipitation, lasting from May to October. In tropical regions more distant from the equator, the rainy season consists of two periods and gives people a certain respite (the rainy belt does not stand still and gradually moves after the zenith of the Sun from the northern to the southern tropic and back).

Tropical summer rain usually begins suddenly, and raindrops, having formed one continuous stream, pour onto the ground in such a dense wall that little can be distinguished at a distance of one meter. As a result, precipitation of such intensity can, in a few hours, not only completely flood cities and villages, but also cause mudflows and floods.

Interestingly, for local residents, the rainy season is a common occurrence, they have long been accustomed to such weather conditions and know how to act, for example, almost all houses in Thailand are built on stilts. That is why tourists are not recommended to visit equatorial and tropical countries during this period. Storms and hurricanes also occur quite often, only in the Philippines in one rainy season about thirty hurricanes and storms fly over the country.

Precipitation in temperate latitudes

The farther from the equator, the weaker the rainy season, and in temperate latitudes it completely disappears: precipitation here is evenly distributed throughout the year and their abundance depends not so much on the Sun, but on winds and mountain ranges. For example:

  • Spring rain is typical for the whole territory of Europe and during the first two months the rains constantly alternate with the Sun. Showers often begin in the last days of spring;
  • In Germany, warm rain can be observed throughout the summer. In Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, on the territory of Central and Eastern Europe, August is considered one of the most rainy months;
  • Autumn cold rain is observed in Norway, France, Italy and the Balkans in October and November, when warm weather is gradually replaced by frost;
  • Winter cold rain can be seen mainly in the south of Europe - in the Balkans, in the west and south of the Iberian Peninsula, but it is not uncommon for the northern territories, for example, it often falls in Scotland and the Faroe Islands.

rain and nature

The role of precipitation in the life of nature can hardly be overestimated, since they both give life and take it away. Rain and wind, forming squalls, thunderstorms, hurricanes can destroy houses, break crops, nullify all human efforts and even deprive him of life or health. The consequences of heavy rainfall are often catastrophic.

Raindrops also give life: after rainfall, nature is renewed and revived. For example, mushroom rain is eagerly awaited by all mushroom pickers. This is a drizzling warm rain that falls from clouds that are low above the earth's surface during the growth of mushrooms. Interestingly, unlike other precipitation, mushroom rain is short-lived, raindrops wet the soil well, and all mushrooms in the soil begin to grow extremely well.

> Why is it raining?

How rain is formed- a description for children and adults: why it rains on Earth, the scheme of the water cycle, the amount of precipitation, rain on other planets.

Rain brings joy to farmers in the heat and sadness to melancholic. You are happy for him if you can't stand the summer heat anymore and angry if you had to go shopping. However, why does it rain at all and how is it formed on the planet?

Let's start with the fact that rain is a liquid form of precipitation. Here you can not do without deciphering the water cycle. It all starts with the fact that the Sun evaporates water from various bodies of water, provided that the air temperature is above 0 ° C. The vapor then rises into the atmosphere, where it condenses into water droplets. Their weight causes them to fall back to the ground.

This is the well-known water cycle in nature. It is often used to describe the journey of a fluid from bottom to top and back. For the appearance of rain, two points are important: saturation and merging.

Saturation

In this process, invisible water vapor condenses on microwave particles, creating tiny droplets. Usually this criterion is conveyed under the guise of relative humidity - the percentage of the total amount of water vapor that can be stored at a certain air temperature.

The amount of water vapor stored before saturation (100% humidity) and transformation into a cloud depends on its temperature mark (the warmer, the more).

merger

This process takes place when the air becomes saturated. Then the water droplets begin to merge to create larger ones (due to turbulence in the airspace).

They combine until their weight breaks through the air resistance and they fall as rain. It is important to understand that rain is the main source of fresh water for many countries, and also provides the necessary conditions in various ecosystems.

Measurement

In order to record the amount of precipitation, they came up with special rain sensors. Most often, they are represented by two cylinders (like a nesting doll), filled with water. The inner one fills up first and transfers water to the second. The remaining precipitation in the outer gives a total score in millimeters.

There is also a clinometer, and the cheapest option is a cylinder with a measuring stick. Precipitation is also tracked by meteorological radar.

Changing of the climate

Of course, changes in the climate, like global warming, have a strong impact on the usual amount of precipitation. The increased amount of carbon dioxide emissions has raised the average temperature around the world. This means that much more water has evaporated.

Over the past century, the amount of precipitation north of 30 ° has increased, but in the tropics it has decreased. It can be noted that North and South America, Northern Europe and Asia have become wetter. But the drought has intensified in Africa and southern Asia.

Rain on other planets

Yes, we are not the only world where there is rain. There is wet precipitation in our solar system, although it has little to no connection with water. For example, on Venus it rains all the time, but you wouldn't want to walk under this stream made of sulfuric acid!

It forms high in the atmospheric layer, where the wind speeds up to 360 km/h. But the droplets immediately evaporate because the surface is heated to 460°C. On Saturn's moon Titan, it's methane rain. It generally has an active hydrological cycle, where hydrocarbons take the place of water.

Recently received even more amazing curiosities. Liquid helium rains can occur on Saturn and Jupiter. It is believed that because of the colossal pressure on all gas giants, there are "diamond precipitation". And it's not a joke. The planets have methane, which forms diamonds under pressure.

And another fascinating case is coronal solar rain. This occurs during a coronal mass ejection, during which the plasma cools and falls to the surface. Even whole splashes are created.



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