Precipitation

Precipitation
Name:
Institution:
Precipitation
The global air movements regulate the climate patterns around the world by controlling the air circulation process which takes place in the atmosphere. The circulation of the air in the space is caused by the heat imbalance on the surface of the Earth in an attempt to restore balance, and the air is circulated by pressure and wind making the temperature to fluctuate around the same limits. For instance, since the warm air is lighter than the cold one, the warm air continuously rises above, and the cold air goes down, and when it reaches the surface of the earth it gets hotter and lighter, and the same process continues making a circulation. Due to the lower density of the warm air, it makes it possible to hold the water vapor as it rises and the air condenses in the space causing precipitation. In other words, the circulation is caused by the rising of the warm air from the surface and descending of the cold air from the atmosphere.
The patterns in the global atmospheric heating happen in a complex mechanism that mainly depends on the energy transfer between the earth’s surface and space within the sun being the main controller. According to experts in the weather forecast, the circulation is a worldwide system of winds which carries or transports wind from the tropical to the latitudes to accomplish the whole process of circulation and precipitation. The circulation is simply caused by the difference in temperature on the different parts of the earth surface and the circulation occurs in an attempt to regulate the global temperature to be in the same range.

To be precise, it is hotter along the equator since the sun is overhead and transfers the heat directly to the earth’s surface. Due to the heating difference, power convectional currents which are categorized as Hadley Cells and Ferral Cells (Ventusky, 2016).
Besides, due to the angle of the sun at the tropical region, the temperatures are highest in these regions. The temperature changes the sun rays further go away from the equator either towards the north or south. The other determinant of the temperature is the landmasses, and the temperature of the landmasses varies depending on the location (Ventusky, 2016). The temperature of the landmasses is higher than that one of the ocean. For example, due to the difference in the landmasses, it explains the varying temperature in the different parts of the globe with the regions around the poles being the coldest. Precipitation is closely related to temperature as evaporation is mainly caused by the heat and the main cause of the rainfall is as a result of the moisture that has evaporated (Ventusky, 2016). Furthermore, along the tropical more evaporation takes place which means more clouds will be formed through precipitation, and this will cause the high among of rainfall.
Moreover, due to the differences in the temperatures along the different parts of the Earth surface and the availability of the sun in some parts of the world is what determines the amount of precipitation. For example, along with the equator, the winds from the north converge with the ones from the south under low pressure, and they are picked by solar radiations which cause the temperature to rise. The combination causes high precipitation along the equator. Hence, the persistent rainfall will be experienced for the most part of the year (Hwang, 2012). The amount of the precipitation varies with the amount of the moisture in the air where high moisture leads to more dense clouds and high rainfall while low moisture causes low rainfall. The water moisture should, however, be able to raise a reasonable amount for it to condense and form the clouds which result in the rain.
Consequently, if there is an inversion in some parts of the troposphere, the density gradient will cause the atmosphere to stabilize which means there will not be enough air movement to cause the circulation and this will cause the precipitation mechanism not occur. Depending on the presence of the condensation nuclei, it will require a certain degree of super saturation to convert the water vapor into raindrops. A humidity of lower than 400% is necessary for the condensation to happen while the humidity is higher than that might be ineffective for the process to happen. The sea also plays a significant part as apart from producing the water necessary for the evaporation, it also produces salt particles which are a source of condensation nuclei.
The similar mechanism that causes precipitation causes the difference in the seasons in different parts of the world. For example, the difference in seasons is mainly caused by the distance of the sun from the earth where during some months, the sun is at the furthest which means there is not enough heat reaching the Earth to cause evaporation. Likewise, with the little heat on the earth surface, it means that humidity is high, but there are no adequate conditions to cause the circulations and hence, this causes the varying amount of rainfall in the different seasons of the year. However, the argument is that the distance of the earth from the sun is not distant enough to cause the difference in seasons. The part that gets more direct sunlight at any given time of the year is the one that receives more rainfall. In terms of the location, this part is called inter-tropical convergence zone or the ITCZ. In this zone the direct sunlight causes the air to become unstable and rise which is the perfect condition for the formation of the rainfall.
Contrarily, around the ITCZ, the heat and the instability in the air cause the pressure to drop hence the air becomes light and starts to rise. As the air rises, it cools, and it condenses to form clouds. Besides, in the case of rapid condensation, it causes precipitation which determines the wet seasons in the tropical region while the slow condensation is not enough for the precipitation to form. For example, since the sun is always on the overhead along the equator, it explains why the rainforests are usually found along the equator. The tropical forests both the dry and they are usually found on either side of the equator.
In conclusion, the atmospheric heating and air circulation are the main determinants of the changes in the weather and climatic conditions. The instability in the air causes movement in the currents causing the hot air to rise, and it condenses as it rises. The rapid condensation causes precipitation which makes the difference between the wet and dry seasons. Finally, since the sun is usually the one that causes the heating and is usually on the overhead along the equator, it determines the difference in the climate and the temperatures in different parts of the world.
References
Hwang, Y.-T. (2012). High Latitudes Forcing and the Tropical Rain Belt. Retrieved February 05, 2018, from NTU.Edu Website: http://homepage.ntu.edu.tw/~ythwang/Yen-Ting_Hwang/Research/Entries/2012/8/24_Tropical_Precipitation.html
Ventusky. (2016, October 16). Global Atmospheric Circulation – pressure Belts and Surface Waves. Retrieved February 05, 2018, from Addeyans-geography.weekly website: https://addeyans-geography.weebly.com/global-atmospheric-circulation.html