Seasonal Distribution of Rainfall
The amount of rainfall changes gradually from season to season.
- Regions receiving rainfall throughput the year: The places located in the western margins of the continents in mid-latitudes like Western Europe receive rainfall throughout the year.
- Rainfall during summers: In the sub-tropical regions, convectional rainfall is limited to summer only.
- Rainfall in winters: Countries located in the Mediterranean regions such as France, Albania and Italy receive rainfall during winters.
World Patterns of Rainfall Distribution
- In May to October, as the Northern Hemisphere is tilted towards the Sun, the equatorial belt of Eastern Asia and the Eastern side of North and South America receive heavy rainfall from onshore winds.
- The western side of these regions and the Polar Regions do not receive any rainfall.
- From November to April, the rays of the Sun fall vertically over the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere. The eastern coasts of Argentina, Africa, Brazil and Australia receive rainfall from the trade winds.
World Distribution of Rainfall
Regions of Heavy Rainfall
The following regions receive more than 200 cm of rainfall:
- Equatorial regions of Africa, South America and Southeast Asia
- Coastal areas of the monsoon regions of Asia
- West coastal regions in the westerly wind belt of middle latitudes in North America and Western Europe
Regions of Moderate Rainfall
The areas which receive 100–200 cm of rainfall are the sub-tropical areas such as East China, Eastern Brazil, and Southeast Asia.
Regions of Low Rainfall
Regions that receive less than 25 cm of rainfall:
- Tropical deserts located on the western margins of the continents and located in the interiors of the continents far away from the oceans.
- Cold deserts or Polar Regions.
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