Lecture 1 - Precipitation and Snowmelt - Precipitation and Snowmelt

PRECIPITATION AND SNOWMELT the rain
Precipitation forms when a cloud droplet is able to grow large enough so that it may fall
to the ground before evaporating
D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

PRECIPITATION AND SNOWMELT the rain – global distribution
In 1986 the Global Precipitation Climatology Project was established with an aim to
obtain a better understanding of precipitation patterns as they vary regionally,
seasonally, and interannually (1). The GPCP used satellite imagery (infrared and
microwave) in addition to more standard raingauge data, to fill the gaps over the
oceans and sparsely populated areas 06-87-471 Hydrology
 we note that the heaviest

rainfalls occur near the
equator (about 5000 mm/yr)
and heavy rains also fall over
the warm pool in the Western
Pacific near Papua New
Guinea as well as off the
North Eastern Coast of
Australia (the South Pacific
Convergence Zone)
 at the other end of the

spectrum, Eastern parts of the
Southern Atlantic and Pacific
may see less than 250 mm/yr
in these regions the sea
surface is cool and rain
bearing clouds are not
subsidized by the atmosphere
06-87-471 Hydrology
 of course, there is
monthly variation as well
 the migration of the

equatorial rainy belt (the
ITCZ) to the southern
hemisphere can be seen
clearly, especially over
the continents, the
South Pacific
Convergence Zone is
wettest in summer also
 the only areas that are

wetter in the winter (than
the summer) are the
midlatitude westerly
storm tracks over the
oceans
06-87-471 Hydrology
PRECIPITATION AND SNOWMELT the rain – the progression – water vapour
 
water vapour  cloud droplets  rain drops

 this is not a simple sequence of events
 a cloud droplet must increase its diameter roughly one million fold before it will
drop from a cloud as a raindrop
 however, even cloud droplets have a preliminary stage (as water vapour)
 the proportion of water vapour in the atmosphere can vary from 1% to 4%

depending on whether you are in a desert or tropical region
 for water vapour to form a cloud droplet, many sequential conditions must be
satisfied
PRECIPITATION AND SNOWMELT the rain – the progression – cloud droplets
 
 vapour can take one of two paths to the cloud droplet stage
supersaturation cloud condensation nuclei
 supersaturation is defined as a state when a given portion of the atmosphere

has reached a relative humidity greater than 100%, in other words, when it
contains more water vapour than is required to produce saturation with respect
to a plane surface of pure water or pure ice

 

 vapour can take one of two paths to the cloud droplet stage
supersaturation cloud condensation nuclei
 the predominant, and more effective way to form a cloud droplet involves a
tiny particle or aerosol, known as a condensation nucleus
 condensation nuclei can be made of natural materials such as dust or volcanic
ash, or can be made of man-made pollutants such as smoke particles

 
 air heated near the earth surface is less dense than cooler surrounding
air and thus tends to rise
 the rising air will cool at a known lapse rate depending on whether is the
air is saturated or not (it will cool faster if the air is dry)
 therefore as the air becomes colder, water vapor must condense into liquid
water because the air cannot hold as much water vapor as it could just
moments before when it was at a higher temperature

the rain
 the water vapor molecules condense
on the surface of the CCN (cloud
condensation nucleus) until the air is in
equilibrium and there are no more
water vapor molecules available for
condensation without making the air
surrounding the drop too dry
 this process can occur very

quicklybillions of cloud droplets can
form in a matter of minutesforming a
cloud

the rain
 it is interesting to note that, without

cloud condensation nuclei,
supersaturation must reach relative
humidities of several hundred percent
in order for water vapor molecules to
condense freely

PRECIPITATION AND SNOWMELT the rain – the progression – rain drops
 

 once a cloud is formed, there are still
considerable thresholds that must be breached
before rain drops will form and fall
 there are two major processes by which cloud

droplets grow to form rain drops that will fall out of
the sky
the Bergeron (ice collision and

crystal) process coalescence
 

 the ice crystal process is centred around
supercooled water
 supercooled refers to water that remains liquid
well below zero Celsius
 contributing factors that enable this seemingly
anomalous behaviour to occur include the small
size of the droplet and the purity of the water
 once the droplet contacts a solid surface or
becomes agitated it will form an ice crystal

 

 once an ice crystal forms and supercooled water
droplets and crystal co-exist, a complex process of
water vapour diffusion towards the ice crystal
begins
 water evapourated from the drop will collect on
the ice crystal and freeze – causing it to grow at the
vapour’s expense
 once at a sufficient size, the crystal will fall from
the cloud, and depending on the temperature of the
air it falls through, will fall as liquid or solid
precipitation

 
 the second rain drop formation process, the

collision and coalescence process is unlike the
Bergeron process as it takes place in warmer
clouds (T>-15C)
 it is the collision of falling and rising droplets that

cause them to coalesce to form larger droplets



 

 a few conditions must be prevalent to promote droplet
growth during the collision and coalescence process:
 the cloud must have a high liquid water content

 sufficiently strong updrafts must be present in the cloud
 the range of droplet sizes should be well distributed
 the cloud should have sufficient thickness such that
droplets will have enough time to gather around smaller
droplets
 the electric charge of the droplets and the electric field of
the cloud should be conducive to droplet agglomeration
PRECIPITATION AND SNOWMELT do it yourself rain – cloud seeding
Remote Cloud Nucleating Generator

Courtesy of North American Weather
Consultants (located in the Sierras
Mountain Range, Cali)
 what do you do if you really need rain?
 make it yourself!
 cloud seeding injects additional or
supplemental condensation nuclei into
clouds to encourage precipitation
 in cold air systems cloud seeding machines fill passing clouds with silver iodide
crystals which bind to water particles in the cloud to encourage ice particle
formation which may fall as snow or rain
 in warm air systems salt or ammonium nitrate are injected which encourage
water particle coalescence
 in terms of effectiveness, cloud seeding proponents claim that it increases

precipitation frequency by 5% to 20%
06-87-471 Hydrology
PRECIPITATION AND SNOWMELT the snow – snowmelt to runoff
 depending on your geography snowmelt can play

a major role in the hydrologic water cycle
 globally, snowmelt is a very significant component

of the worldwide movement of water
 in colder climates much of spring time runoff,

stream and river flow is due to snow melt
 mountain snow fields act as natural reservoirs for

many western United States water-supply systems,
storing precipitation from the cool season, when
most precipitation falls and forms snowpacks, until
the warm season when most or all snowpacks melt
and release water into rivers
 as much as 75 percent of water supplies in the

western states are derived from snowmelt
06-87-471 Hydrology
 examination of the hydrograph shown,

demonstrates the contribution of snowmelt to
stream flow for the North Fork American River in
California
 the large peaks are largely the result of snowmelt
06-87-471 Hydrology
 the quantity and the rush with which

snowmelt events can occur leads to serious
concerns about flooding
 in Switzerland, snowmelt forecasting is

now being attempted to be used as a flood
warning tool
 common in the US, “rain on snow” events

can lead to catastrophic floods causing
financial hardship and loss of life
06-87-471 Hydrology

Lecture 1 - Precipitation and Snowmelt - Precipitation and Snowmelt

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PRECIPITATION AND SNOWMELT the rain

D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

 we note that the heaviest

 at the other end of the

 the migration of the

 the only areas that are

water vapour  cloud droplets  rain drops

 the proportion of water vapour in the atmosphere can vary from 1% to 4%

water vapour  cloud droplets  rain drops

supersaturation cloud condensation nuclei

 supersaturation is defined as a state when a given portion of the atmosphere

D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

water vapour  cloud droplets  rain drops

supersaturation cloud condensation nuclei

D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

water vapour  cloud droplets  rain drops

D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

 this process can occur very

D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

 it is interesting to note that, without

D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

water vapour  cloud droplets  rain drops

 there are two major processes by which cloud

the Bergeron (ice collision and

water vapour  cloud droplets  rain drops

D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

water vapour  cloud droplets  rain drops

D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

water vapour  cloud droplets  rain drops

 the second rain drop formation process, the

 it is the collision of falling and rising droplets that

D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

D. Brown © 2005 06-87-471 Hydrology

water vapour  cloud droplets  rain drops

 the cloud must have a high liquid water content

Remote Cloud Nucleating Generator

 in terms of effectiveness, cloud seeding proponents claim that it increases

 depending on your geography snowmelt can play

 globally, snowmelt is a very significant component

 in colder climates much of spring time runoff,

 mountain snow fields act as natural reservoirs for

 as much as 75 percent of water supplies in the

 examination of the hydrograph shown,

 the large peaks are largely the result of snowmelt

 the quantity and the rush with which

 in Switzerland, snowmelt forecasting is

 common in the US, “rain on snow” events

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