ABEN55a – LECTURE 05

CHAPTER 7 Precipitation
Precipitation: Any form of water particles liquid or solid that falls from the atmosphere and reaches the ground
How Precipitation Forms?

• Cloud droplets are about 20 micrometers in diameter. A human hair is

about 75 micrometers
• A rain droplet is about 2 mm or 100 times the average cloud droplet
• Cloud droplets are formed from the condensation of water vapor
around aerosol particles which is called cloud condensation
nuclei (CNN).
• CNN originate from the Earth’s surface, from both natural and
man-made sources such as: Dust, Volcanoes, Smoke, Ocean spray
(salt particles), Biological processes and Industrial processes

Forms of Precipitation
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Rain: is restricted to droplets of water with a diameter at least 0.5mm.

Cloudbursts: are unusually heavy rainfalls.

• Sudden rainfall in one area

Drizzle: are fine, uniform droplets with a diameter less than 0.5mm. (not really considered rain)
Virga: is rain that evaporates above ground.

• Upon precipitation, because of the earth’s dry surface, the rain before falling into earth evaporates.
• This phenomenon is characterized by a falling rain that does not reach the earth’s ground because it
immediately evaporates.
Fall streaks: are ice crystals that sublime in the dry air below

• Similar to Virga but in form of ice.

Mist: contains the smallest droplets.
Snow: is precipitation in the form of ice crystals or aggregates of ice crystals.
Sleet: is clear to translucent particles of ice, raindrops freeze while falling.
Freezing rain (glaze): are raindrops that become super-cooled, hit a surface, and freeze immediately
Hail: is precipitation in the form of hard, rounded pellets of ice

• Destructive form of precipitation

Rainfall Intensity

• Light rain – Rate of rain varies between 0 to 2.5 millimeters

• Moderate rain – Rate of rain varies between 2.6 millimeters to 7.6 millimeters
• Heavy rain – Rate of rain is beyond 7.6 millimeters
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Precipitation Measurement
A standard rain gauge catches rain water and conducts it through a narrow opening into a cylindrical measuring
tube.

• The gauge is 20 cm in diameter and can measure rainfall to the nearest 0.05 cm.
• < 0.05 cm = trace
• Height of the inner tube is 50 mm
A tipping bucket has two compartments (or buckets).

• When one bucket fills, it tips and empties its water and the other bucket takes its place at the funnel.
• A weighing gauge collects rain fall in a cylinder that rests on a spring balance. As the cylinder fills, the
movement is transmitted to a pen that records the data.

The Tipping Bucket

When measuring snowfall, two measurements are normally taken.

• The depth is measured with a calibrated stick or measuring stick.

• To obtain the water equivalent, snow is melted and then weighed or measured as rain.
Weather radar uses radio waves to measure precipitation.

• The radio waves penetrate small droplets, but are reflected off larger ones.
• Echoes are sent back and displayed