No forest on Earth has more power to effect the climate, in particular attract and create rain, than a tropical rainforest. In any tropical rainforest more water is collectively stored in plants and trees than any fresh water body. So to put this into perspective, there is more water in the Amazon forest itself than the total of rivers and lakes contained within it. The same goes for the Congo and all other major forests.
Small to large weather systems can also form more rapidly in a rainforest (depending on the size of the forest) than an ocean at the same latitude. Why is this? That is because plants are constantly perspiring (releasing water from their pores). And whether the water is coming from within the plant or collected and/or condensed on top of the plant, there a tightly packed forest of plants provides more surface area for this water to evaporate. Due to the warm temperatures, and being on or near the equator this area recieves the most direct, intense solar rays, which drastically speeds up this process of evaporation. And this power sun makes these plants work at peak efficiency. That is part of the reason it is the most humid area on Earth.
The Amazon rainforest, with it's massive storage of water and it's perfect solar conditions, creates it's own weather. An impressive 50% of the rain that falls in the Amazon comes from the Amazon forest itself. This system is so powerful that it provides rain for other areas of the world as well, most notably it provides most of the rain for the pantanal of Brasil and 50% of the rain for the southern half of Brasil's Atlantic forest.
From little cells to massive atmospheric downpours the Amazon has the ability to create it all. With regards to massive downpours, these can be created by what is known as the biotic pump theory. Basically massive amounts of water evaporate from the forest. As this warm moisture rises to form large clouds, a powerful vacumm effect occurs and cold air from far and wide rushes in to fill the space below. This low pressure below can even pull with it weather systems from the ocean. These rain clouds combine to form a massive rainstorm that can last anywhere from 8 to 24 hours of nonstop rain. The following days after this event this typically warm area is cooler until the low pressure disappates.
There are a variety of different ways and combinations by which rain occurs in the jungle. After all, it is common knowledge that healthy forests attract rain. Even on a molecular level water molecules are naturally attracted to each other throught the process of electrostatic attraction. But scientists are still learning new things about these complex systems and their many possibilities. For it's vital and impressive effect on the climate, it is the number one reason why our rainforests of the world must be protected. In fact, reforested as much as possible, in order to protect and stabilize life on Earth...
To learn more about the biotic pump theory see:
Amazon rainfall
Amazon Pantanal connection
https://phys.org/news/2021-05-extreme-drought-affected-pantanal.html
Ticuna village of San Martin, Amacayacu National Park, Amazonas, Colombia
Commentaires