16.5 Precipitation
Jan 14, 2016
16.5 Precipitation
Precipitation
• Precipitation is any form of water that falls from clouds and reaches Earth’s surface.– Not all clouds produce precipitation– Cloud droplets or ice crystals must grow
heavy enough to fall through the air.– Grow by colliding with other droplets.
Types of Precipitation
• Common Types of Precipitation– Rain– Sleet– Freezing Rain– Hail– Snow
Types of Precipitation• Rain
– Drops less than 0.5mm
– Most common. Usually fall from nimbostratus clouds.
• Freezing Rain– Rain that freezes
when it touches a cold surface.
Types of Precipitation
• Sleet– Rain that freezes
into ice.– Less than 5mm in
diameter.
• Hail– Pellets of ice larger
than 5mm.– Form in
cumulonimbus clouds
Measuring Precipitation
• Meteorologists measure rain with a rain gauge.– Collects rainfall with a
funnel.– Depth divided by ten.