Question

The temperature of the areas surrounding Kochi before each storm was about 10°C and there was the same amount of water vapor in the air.

Kochi Before Storm 1: Graphic of a city skyline with an air parcel. The temperature inside the air parcel is 35° Celsius and outside is 10° Celsius. Arrows labeled wind frame the air parcel, pointing inwards. Before Storm 2: Same skyline with an air parcel, framed by the same arrows. The temperature inside the air parcel is 12° Celsius and outside is 10° Celsius. Before Storm 3: Same skyline with an air parcel, but no arrows indicating wind. The temperature inside the air parcel is 35° Celsius and outside is 10° Celsius. Before Storm 4: Same skyline and air parcel, but no arrows indicating wind. The temperature inside the air parcel is 12° Celsius and outside is 10° Celsius.
Given this information, which storm do you predict will have the most rainfall and why?


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Answer 1

Storm 1.

Why: all four parcels contain the same amount of moisture, so the total water available is the same. What controls how much of that moisture turns into rain is how strongly the air is lifted and how buoyant it is (CAPE). Storm 1 combines a very warm parcel (35°C → strong buoyancy when it rises) with forced convergence/wind-driven uplift (the arrows), so it will produce the strongest updrafts, deepest convection and the most condensation/precipitation.

Quick comparison:
- Storm 3 (35°C, no wind): buoyant, so some convective rain, but less organized/less lifting than Storm 1.
- Storm 2 (12°C, wind): forced lift but little buoyancy → modest rain.
- Storm 4 (12°C, no wind): least likely to produce much rain.