A STUDY OF CONVECTIVE PRECIPITATION BASED ON CLOUD AND RADAR OBSERVATIONS

Abstract

Observations of precipitation and cloud-top height in the central United States and in the Caribbean area, obtained from radar-equipped airplanes, have been analyzed in terms of the fraction of clouds of a given height which contains precipitation. These data are compared with observations of a similar type taken by Braham, Reynolds and Harrell in New Mexico. It is concluded that the condensation-coalescence process can account for the formation of precipitation in convective clouds in all three regions but in varying proportions of clouds.