Sunset Virga

Albuquerque, NM (July 6, 2009) ..

Today the setting sun lit up the underside of the clouds near our campsite. In the photo above long parallel tendrils of rain can be seen falling from a developing cumulus cloud. Notice the rain does not reach the ground. This is a weather phenomena known as virga .. the falling rain evaporates on the way down because of extremely low humidity; it's a common occurance in the high desert of the southwest but not usually seen in the midwest. Local sailplane enthusiasts stay away from the virga because the evaporation creates cool air which in turn falls to the earth rapidly in the form of stong downdrafts.