- 2067 Mangsir (old course) · 4 marks
Various forms of precipitation
Short answer
Precipitation falls as rain (liquid >0.5 mm), drizzle (<0.5 mm), snow (ice crystals), sleet (ice pellets), glaze (freezing rain), and hail (ice lumps 5–50 mm). Rain and snow contribute most to water resources.
Describe various forms of precipitation.
Precipitation is any form of water that falls from the atmosphere to the earth. The main forms are:
| Form | Description |
|---|---|
| Rain | Liquid drops larger than 0.5 mm in diameter; the most common form. Light (< 2.5 mm/h), moderate (2.5-7.5 mm/h), heavy (> 7.5 mm/h) |
| Drizzle | Very small drops (< 0.5 mm) falling slowly, usually from stratus clouds |
| Snow | Ice crystals joined into flakes, falling when the temperature is below 0 °C; important in Himalayan basins |
| Sleet | Frozen or partly frozen raindrops (ice pellets) from rain passing through a cold layer |
| Glaze (freezing rain) | Rain that freezes on contact with a cold surface, forming an ice layer |
| Hail | Lumps of ice 5-50 mm or more from cumulonimbus clouds, made by repeated lifting in strong updrafts |
| Dew, frost, fog drip | Small deposits by condensation on cold surfaces (not true falling precipitation, but sometimes counted) |
Of these, rain and snow contribute most to the water resources of Nepal.
✓ Answer checked by Claude Sonnet 5.5