Rain is not salty because salt does not evaporate along with water. The evaporation and condensation processes involved in rain formation leave the salt behind.
The Journey of Rain and Why It's Fresh
Here's a breakdown of why rain is fresh, even though it originates from sources like the ocean which are very salty:
- Evaporation: Water evaporates from the Earth's surface, including oceans, lakes, and rivers.
- Salt Stays Behind: Salt and other minerals do not evaporate along with the water. As stated in the reference, "salt can't evaporate like water can and does."
- Condensation: The evaporated water rises into the atmosphere, cools, and condenses into clouds.
- Precipitation: When the water droplets in the clouds become heavy enough, they fall back to earth as rain. Since the salt was left behind during evaporation, the rain is fresh.
Illustrative Table
| Process | What Happens | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Evaporation | Water turns into vapor and rises. | Salt and minerals remain behind. |
| Condensation | Water vapor cools and forms clouds. | Cloud water is pure (or relatively pure). |
| Precipitation | Water droplets fall back to Earth as rain. | Rainwater is fresh and not salty. |
Impact on Hurricanes
The reference also mentions that hurricanes use the release of latent heat energy to get stronger, which occurs during the evaporation and condensation process. The separation of salt from the evaporating ocean water is crucial in this process as well.
