Why Most Rain Never Reaches The Ground

Less than half of the rain that falls from a cloud makes it all the way to the ground – because a lot evaporates while falling or after landing in treetops. Thanks to Georgia Southern University for sponsoring this video. Thanks also to our supporters on https://www.patreon.com/MinuteEarth You can see more of John Van Stan s research here: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/John_Van_Stan2 ___________________________________________ FYI: We try to leave jargon out of our videos, but if you want to learn more about this topic, here are some keywords to get your googling started: Virga: an observable shaft of precipitation falling from a cloud that evaporates before reaching the ground Rainfall interception: The fraction of rainfall that falls on leaves, branches and trunks of trees and evaporates before dripping to the ground. ___________________________________________ Credits (and Twitter handles): Script Writer: Peter Reich Script Editor: Alex Reich (@alexhreich) Video Illustrator: Qingyang Chen (@QCVisual) Video Director: Kate Yoshida (@KateYoshida) Video Narrator: Kate Yoshida (@KateYoshida) With Contributions From: Henry Reich, Ever Salazar, Emily Elert, David Goldenberg Music by: Nathaniel Schroeder: http://www.soundcloud.com/drschroeder _________________________________________ Like our videos? Subscribe to MinuteEarth on YouTube: http://goo.gl/EpIDGd Support us on Patreon: https://goo.gl/ZVgLQZ Also, say hello on: Facebook: http://goo.gl/FpAvo6 Twitter: http://goo.gl/Y1aWVC And find us on itunes: https://goo.gl/sfwS6n ___________________________________________ References: Good, S.P., Noone, D. and Bowen, G., 2015. Hydrologic connectivity constrains partitioning of global terrestrial water fluxes. Science, 349(6244), pp.175-177. Langhans, W., Yeo, K. and Romps, D.M., 2015. Lagrangian investigation of the precipitation efficiency of convective clouds. Journal of the Atmospheric Sciences, 72(3), pp.1045-1062. Miralles, D.G., Gash, J.H., Holmes, T.R., de Jeu, R.A. and Dolman, A.J., 2010. Global canopy interception from satellite observations. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 115(D16). Oki, T. and Kanae, S., 2006. Global hydrological cycles and world water resources. science, 313(5790), pp.1068-1072. Sadeghi, S.M.M., Attarod, P., Van Stan, J.T. and Pypker, T.G., 2016. The importance of considering rainfall partitioning in afforestation initiatives in semiarid climates: A comparison of common planted tree species in Tehran, Iran. Science of the Total Environment, 568, pp.845-855. Van Stan, J.T., Levia Jr, D.F. and Jenkins, R.B., 2015. Forest canopy interception loss across temporal scales: Implications for urban greening initiatives. The Professional Geographer, 67(1), pp.41-51.