How much water moves into the atmosphere when it’s hot out? The Clausius-Clapeyron equation, which relates temperature to the behavior of water vapor molecules, dictates that for every 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit (1 degree Celsius) of warming, water vapor can increase about 7%. And more moisture spells heavier rain, or heavier snow during winter.
This additional water vapor means there’s more moisture available to condense into raindrops when conditions are right for precipitation to form. Higher temperatures cause more liquid water to evaporate from soils, plants, oceans, and waterways, becoming water vapor. has warmed by 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit (1 degree Celsius) as a result of the release of heat-trapping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Since 1901, the average temperature of the U.S. What causes heavier rainfall?Ĭlimate scientists attribute increasingly extreme precipitation events to warmer air and its ability to “hold” more water vapor than cooler air. The same day, flash flooding caused by torrential rainfall north of Phoenix killed 10 members of a family celebrating a birthday at a swimming hole. One such intense monsoonal event occurred on Jin Tucson, Arizona, when 1.45 inches of rain fell in just one hour, an impressive total given that Tucson normally sees 2.25 inches of rainfall for the entire month of July. But even there, the intensity of rainfall during the region’s monsoon season has increased since the 1960s, according to a study in the peer-reviewed journal Geophysical Research Letters. The Southwest is the only region experiencing a decrease in heavy precipitation events. Today’s rainstorms give new meaning to this age-old expression.Įxtreme precipitation has increased in nearly every region of the mainland United States since the start of the 20th century, according to the Fourth National Climate Assessment, a comprehensive scientific report about climate change in the U.S.
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