Conventional Rainfall, also known as convective rainfall, is formed through a process called convection. Convection occurs when warm, moist air rises, cools, condenses, and forms clouds, eventually leading to precipitation in the form of rain.

Here is a step-by-step description of how conventional rainfall is formed:

1. Solar Heating: The Sun’s energy heats the Earth’s surface, particularly in areas with intense solar radiation or warm surface temperatures. This heating causes the air near the surface to warm up, leading to the formation of warm air masses.
2. Upward Vertical Movement: As the air near the surface becomes heated, it becomes less dense and lighter than the surrounding air. This warm air starts to rise due to its buoyancy, initiating an upward vertical movement.
3. Adiabatic Cooling: As the warm air rises, it expands due to the decreasing atmospheric pressure with height. This expansion leads to adiabatic cooling, where the air temperature decreases as it ascends through the atmosphere.
4. Condensation and Cloud Formation: As the rising air cools, it eventually reaches its dew point temperature. The dew point is the temperature at which the air becomes saturated with water vapor, and condensation begins to occur. Water vapor in the air condenses into tiny water droplets or ice crystals around microscopic particles known as condensation nuclei. These condensed water droplets and ice crystals cluster together, forming clouds.
5. Cloud Growth: Within the cloud, water droplets and ice crystals continue to grow through the process of collision and coalescence. As these particles collide, they merge together, forming larger droplets. This process continues until the droplets become too heavy to remain suspended in the cloud and start to fall.
6. Precipitation: When the water droplets in the cloud become large enough, they overcome the upward movement of air and begin to fall from the cloud towards the Earth’s surface. These falling droplets form raindrops, which reach the ground as rainfall.

The process of conventional rainfall is often associated with convective storms, which are characterized by towering cumulonimbus clouds. These storms can be intense and relatively localized, resulting in heavy rainfall over a specific area for a limited period.

Conventional rainfall is a crucial component of the Earth’s water cycle, replenishing freshwater resources and sustaining ecosystems. However, it can also be accompanied by thunder, lightning, and other severe weather phenomena.

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