Context
Recently, cloudbursts have been reported from different places in J&K, the Union Territory of Ladakh, Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh. A 2017 study of cloudbursts in the Indian Himalayas noted that most of the events occurred in July and August.
What is a cloudburst?
- Cloudbursts are short-duration and intense rainfall events over a small area.
- It is a weather phenomenon that has unexpected precipitation exceeding 100mm/h over a geographical region of around 20-30 square km.
- It occurs when the relative humidity and cloud cover are at the maximum level with low temperature and slow winds.
- This situation enhances a high amount of clouds condensation at a very rapid rate and results in a cloudburst.
Cloud burst and Climate Change
- Climate change will increase the frequency and the intensity of cloudbursts in many cities across the globe.
- There are40% chance of the annual average global temperature temporarily reaching 1.5°C above the pre-industrial level in at least one of the next five years.
- As the temperatures increase atmosphere can hold more and more moisture,
- This moisture comes down as a short very intense rainfall ina short duration probably half an hour or one hour that results in flash floods in the mountainous areas and urban floods in the cities.
- With climate change, we will witness these cloudburst events in increased frequency in the future.
