Trace substances in rain water: concentration variations during convective rains, and their interpretation

Donald F. Gatz; A. Nelson Dingle

doi:10.3402/tellusa.v23i1.10286

Trace substances in rain water: concentration variations during convective rains, and their interpretation

Tellus

Volume 23 (1971): Issue 1

By: Donald F. Gatz and A. Nelson Dingle

Open Access

|Jan 1971

Abstract

The temporal changes of contaminant concentrations in rain water samples collected sequentially at a fixed point are dependent upon both the rain scavenging and drop growth processes and the advective effects of the motion field upon the scalar field of concentration variations in the rain cloud. The observations that rainfall intensity and contaminant concentrations are usually negatively correlated, but occasionally for short periods are positively correlated, are explained. Periods of positive correlation appear mainly because of a predominating advective effect, whereas, all drop growth and scavenging processes operate to produce the negative correlation.

In the massive storms characterized by Browning (1964) as “SR-storms” and Newton (1966) as “persistent” an extraordinarily well-organized downdraft is inferred. The strong evaporative effect of this downdraft upon rain in contact with it produces an atypical variation of concentrations in relation to rainfall rates. An example of this is presented.

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Articles in this issue

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3402/tellusa.v23i1.10286 | Journal eISSN: 3035-9554

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Language: English

Page range: 14 - 27

Submitted on: Apr 6, 1970

Accepted on: Oct 5, 1970

Published on: Jan 1, 1971

Published by: Stockholm University Press

In partnership with: Paradigm Publishing Services

© 1971 Donald F. Gatz, A. Nelson Dingle, published by Stockholm University Press
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Volume 23 (1971): Issue 1