Hydrology

Precipitation

Lec. Safa’a Sabry Mohammed

Precipitation
• All forms of water deposited on the earth surface are derived from
atmospheric vapor. Main source : Ocean & Seas.

• For precipitation to form:

1. The atmosphere must have moisture.
2. There must be sufficient nuclei present to aid condensation.

3. Weather condition must be good for condensation of water vapor to

take place.
4. The product of condensation must reach the earth.
Precipitation
• Under proper weather conditions, the water vapor condenses over nuclei
to form tiny water droplets of sizes less than 0.1 mm in diameter. The
nuclei are usually salt particles or products of combustion and are
normally available in plenty.

• The net precipitation at a place and its form depend upon a number of
meteorological factors, such as the weather elements like wind,
temperature, humidity and pressure in the volume region enclosing the
clouds and the ground surface at the given place.
Forms of Condensation and Precipitation
Forms of precipitation
• Precipitation has many forms as follows:
1. Drizzle (mist) (‫)رذاذ‬: A fine sprinkle of numerous water droplets of size less than
0.5 𝑚𝑚 in diameter and intensity less than 1 𝑚𝑚/ℎ𝑟. The
drops are so small that appear to float in the air.
2. Rain (‫)مطر‬: Precipitation in the form of water drops of sizes larger than 0.5 𝑚𝑚, the
maximum size of a drop is about 6 𝑚𝑚. On the basis of intensity rainfall
classified into :
Forms of precipitation
3- Glaze (‫)الصقيل‬: When rain or drizzle comes in contact with cold ground at around
0 ℃, the water drops freeze to form an ice coating (freezing rain).
4- Snow (‫)وفر الثلج‬: Ice crystals which usually combine to form flakes of new snow has
an initial density 0.06– 0.15 𝑔𝑚/ 𝑐𝑚3 (average density 0.1 𝑔𝑚
/𝑐𝑚3 ).
5- Hail (‫)البرد‬: Showery precipitation in the form of irregular lumps of ice of size more
than 8 𝑚𝑚. Hail occur in violent thunderstorms in which vertical
currents are very strong.
6- Sleet (‫)الصقيع‬: Frozen rain drops of transparent grains which form when rain falls
through air at subfreezing temperature.
7- Rime (‫)الصقيع‬: a white, opaque deposit of ice granules more or less separated by
trapped air and formed by the rapid freezing of super-cooled water
drops impinging on exposed objects (specific gravity 0.2-0.3).
Rime
Other types of precipitation Hailstones

- Snow pellets (soft hail).

- Hail stones.
- Ice pellets.
- Small hail.

Ice Pellets
Types of Precipitation
1- Cyclonic precipitation
A- Frontal
I- Warm front precipitation.
II- Cold front precipitation.
B- Non frontal.
2- Convective precipitation.
3- Orographic precipitation.
4- Artificially induced (cloud seeding)
Cyclonic Precipitation (Frontal/Non frontal)
• Frontal precipitation results when the leading edge (front) of a warm air
mass meets a cool air mass. The warmer air mass is forced up over the
cool air. As it rises the warm air cools, moisture in the air condenses,
clouds and precipitation result.
Convective Precipitation
• Convectional precipitation results from the heating of the earth's surface
that causes air to rise rapidly. As the air rises, it cools and moisture
condenses into clouds and precipitation.
Orographic Precipitation
• It results when warm moist air of the ocean is forced to rise by large
mountains. As the air rises it cools, moisture in the air condenses and
clouds and precipitation result on the windward side of the mountain
while the leeward side receives very little. This is common in British
Columbia.
Cloud seeding
Measurements of Precipitation
• All forms of precipitation are measured on the basis of the vertical depth
of water that would accumulative on a level surface if the precipitation
remained where it full.
• Rain gauge is an open receptacle with vertical sides. The following
consideration are important to site a rain gauge :-
1. The ground must be level and in the open area and the instrument
must present a horizontal catch surface.
2. The gauge must be set as near the ground as possible to reduce wind
effects and it must be sufficiently high to prevent splashing, flooding,…
etc.
3. The instrument must be surrounded by an open fenced area of at least
(5.5 x 5.5)m2 .No object should be nearer to the instrument than 30m
or twice the height of the obstruction.
Measurements of Precipitation
• The rain instruments measure:
1. Amount of rain (depth in mm).
2. Intensity (mm/hr).
• Another instruments measure:
1. Distribution of rain drops.
2. Time of beginning and ending of rain.
• The instruments may be classified into:
1. Recording gauges.
2. Non Recording gauges.
Rain gauges
1- Standard 8” inch rain gauges (U.S. Weather Bureau)

D= 8 in = 20.3 cm

Collector or P
receiver
Measuring
stick
Measuring
tube
• Advantages of the over flow:
1. To protect from evaporation. Depth
Overflow =y
2. If a very heavy rain was occurred cone
the overflow can will fill.

d
A standard rain gauge
Rain gauges
2- Weighing – type gauge
• This gauge weighs the rain or snow
which falls into a bucket set on the
plate form of a spring or level
balance. The increasing weight of the
bucket and its contents is recorded
on a chart. The record thus shows the
accumulation of precipitation.
Rain gauges
2- Weighing – type gauge
Funnel is removed in the version currently used by Met
Service, so that both snow and rain are measured. Anti-freeze
in bucket in winter melts snow, so gauge measures rain plus
snow water content.

For electronic recording, a “load cell” positioned under the

bucket sends a signal proportional to the weight of
precipitation collected.

Older models recorded the weight on a rotating chart.

Rain gauges
3- Tipping – bucket rain gauge
• The water caught in the collector is funneled into two compartment bucket (0.25mm,
0.1mm,… etc).
Rain gauges
Tele-rain gauge …… (Tipping bucket rain gauge)

• The tele-rain-gauge
1 - collecting funnel
2 - tilting baskets
3 - electric signal
4 - evacuation
Rain gauges
Tipping bucket rain gauge

• Each tip causes a switch

to close and re-open
(pulse data).
• Rain amount and rate
can be determined.
Rain gauges
Tipping Bucket with siphon
Rain gauges
4- Floating recording gauge (Natural siphon type)
• The rainfall is led into a float chamber causing a float to rise. A pen attached to the floor
through a lever system records the elevation of the float on a rotating drum driven by a
clock work mechanism. A syphone arrangement empties the float chamber.

• The graphic rain gauge

1-receiver
2-floater
3-siphon
4-recording needle
5-drum with diagram
6-clock mechanism
Rain gauges
5- Telemetering rain gauges
• Recording type contain electronic units to
transmit the data on rainfall to a base
station at regular intervals and on
interrogation.

6- Radar measurement of rainfall

• A powerful instrument for measuring the
areal extent location and movement of
rain storm.

7- Satellites estimates of precipitation

Rain intensity
Precipitation ,P

??
P2
∆P
P1

Time , t
t1 ∆t t2
∆𝑃 𝑃2 −𝑃1
𝐼= =
∆𝑡 𝑡2 −𝑡1
I = rainfall intensity (mm/hr)