Search Post on this Blog

Precipitation and rainfall UPSC| Precipitation UPSC geography | Rainfall UPSC geography| Climatology | UPPSC

About precipitation and rainfall:

After the condensation of water vapor in the atmosphere, the release of moisture is known as precipitation. 

Precipitation may take place either in liquid form or in solid form.

Precipitation that takes place in form of water is called rainfall. 

Type of precipitation:

The following are different types of precipitation-

  • Snowfall
  • Sleet
  • hailstones
  • Drizzle
  • Rainfall

Snowfall: 

When the temperature is lower than zero degrees centigrade, precipitation takes place in form of fine flakes of snow is called snowfall. 
In India, snowfall is often seen in the Himalayas.

Sleet:

Water drops and micro drops of ice fall simultaneously on the ground; it is called Sleet. 
Sleet is frozen raindrops and refrozen melted snow water. 
Sleet happens when the layer of air with a temperature above freezing points overlies the subfreezing layer near the ground. As a result, raindrops solidify and reach the ground as small pellets of ice not bigger than raindrops.

Hail Stones:

Sometimes, drops of rain after being released by the clouds become solidified into small rounded sold pieces of ice and which reach the surface of the earth are called hailstones. 
Hailstones have several concentric layers of ice obe over others. 


Drizzle:

Light rain with uniform micro drops is called Drizzle. It generally happens due to the passage of the stratus cloud. 

Rainfall:

Precipitation happens in form of water and is called rainfall. Rainfall is the most prominent form of precipitation.

On the basis of origin, there are three types of rainfall-

  • Conventional rainfall
  • Orographic or relief rainfall
  • Frontal( Cyclonic) rainfall


Conventional Rainfall:

Convection rainfall occurs mainly in areas where large water bodies are present to provide moisture for precipitation. For example, convectional rainfall is common in equatorial regions. Convection precipitation occurs when air with moisture rises and the water vapor condenses. Convectional rain usually falls in the same area where the water vapor evaporates.

Orographic( relief) rainfall:

Orographic rain occurs in mountainous regions. When the air rises with the height of the mountains, it becomes condensed. From which side the wind rises on the mountain, it rains on the same side. Mountain rainfall occurs in the Western Ghats and Himalayan mountains of India.

Cyclonic rainfall ( Frontal rainfall):

Cyclonic rain is caused by the disturbance of the atmosphere and it occurs on the boundary region of two air masses. Cyclonic rains in India occur mainly on the east coast. Due to Western Cyclonic Disturbance, North-Western India receives rainfall in the winter season as well.

You may like also:

Previous
Next Post »