16.5 Precipitation

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16.5 Precipitation
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Precipitation

• Precipitation is any form of water that falls
  from clouds and reaches Earths 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.

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Types of Precipitation

• Common Types of Precipitation
• Rain
• Sleet
• Freezing Rain
• Hail
• Snow

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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.

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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

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Measuring Precipitation

• Meteorologists measure rain with a rain gauge.
• Collects rainfall with a funnel.
• Depth divided by ten.