Question

State the major facts about the distribution of rainfall in the world.

Answer 1

The major facts about the distribution of rainfall in the world are:

• More rain occurs in tropical latitudes.
• About 98% of the Earth's surface receives rainfall in summer.
• Low-pressure areas like cyclones in tropical latitudes bring heavy rainfall.
• Winds blowing over warm ocean currents bring more rain than those blowing over cold currents.
• Mountains cause orographic rainfall, with rainfall on the windward side and dry conditions (rain shadow) on the leeward side.
• Coastal areas receive more rainfall than interior regions.
• The equatorial region between 10°N and 10°S receives maximum rainfall due to convectional rainfall.
• Trade winds cause rainfall on the eastern margins of continents and dryness on the western margins in the tropics, causing deserts on the western sides.
• Westerlies bring rainfall to western margins of continents between 40° and 60° latitudes, while eastern margins here remain dry.
• Polar regions get very little rainfall due to low temperature and evaporation.