Chance of cloudburst in Uttarakhand during the next 24 hrs

New Delhi, Monday, September 17, The rainfall activities over the hilly areas of Uttarakhand are expected to continue during the next twenty four to forty eight hours, of which the first twenty four hours would see one or two incidents of cloudburst as heavy to very heavy rain is predicted over the region during this period.

Cloudburst is an event in which heavy rain lashes an area at a very fast rate. The area does not exceed 20-30 km while the rainfall may occur up to 100 mm per hour. This causes flash floods. There have been numerous cloudbursts in Uttarakhand during this monsoon season.

Cloudbursts are regular during the monsoon season. It is assumed that they occur because of the rapid lifting of the monsoon clouds by the steep orography of the region. The clouds get vertically lifted and these convective clouds can extend up to the height of 15000m above the ground. This process is called the "cumulonimbus convection condition" which results in formation of towering vertical dense clouds.

The Himalayan region in India is more prone to cloudburst as the cloud, which lifts rapidly vertically is also accompanied by the moistened soil of the region due to earlier rains. This moist soil perhaps acts as an additional source of moisture and might also have a role in the regular cloudburst in the region.

A cloudburst occurs during the monsoon season over the Himalayan region, northeastern states and the Western Ghats. It can also occur over the plains, but such occurrences are exceptional.