Precipitation specific amount, basis. Radar imagery forecasting techniques show higher skill than model forecasts within six to seven hours of the time of the radar image. The forecasts can be verified through use of rain gauge measurements, weather radar estimates, or a combination of both. Various skill scores can be determined to measure the value of the rainfall forecast. Precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravity. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, graupel and hail. Precipitation occurs when a portion of the atmosphere becomes saturated with
Ice pellets a solid mass unless mixed with freezing rain. The METAR code for ice pellets is PL (PE before November 1998). Ice pellets are known as sleet in the United States, the official term used by the U.S. National Weather Service. However, the term sleet refers to a mixture of rain and snow in most Commonwealth countries, including Canada. Because of this, Environment Canada never uses the term "sleet", and uses the terms "ice pellets" or "wet snow" instead. Ice pellets form when a layer of above-freezing air is located between above the ground, with sub-freezing air both above and below