Precipitation
By
Rachel Miller
What is Rain?
Rain is a form of precipitation. Moisture that is in the atmosphere builds up in clouds. When the cloud cannot hold enough water, the water falls from the clouds in the form of drops which is known as rain. Rain is a big component of the water cycle and is responsibile for most of the fresh water on the Earth.
What is Snow?
Snow is precipitation in the form of ice crystals or flakes. Snow crystals start to form in clouds and begin as water vapor . When a cloud becomes very cold, the water vapor changes into ice crystals. When the crystals begin to get heavy enough, they fall from the cloud and reach the ground as snow. Snowflakes can come in all different shapes and sizes and have a white fluffy texture.
What is Hail?
Hail usually forms in warmer weather during thunderstorms . It forms within thunderstorm clouds when upward moving air keeps balls of frozen water from falling. These balls start to grow larger as cold water hits them and freezes. These balls are known as hail. Hail can be very harmful since they are very large and hard balls of frozen water.
What is Sleet?
Sleet is another form of precipitation and is when raindrops freeze into ice as the fall from the clouds to the ground. Sleet is like slush and are usually smaller and not as hard as hail.
This text is adapted from:
WEATHER
By: Seymour Simon
Copyright 1993
by HarperCollins Publishers