earth science

Sunshower

Sunshower is a earth science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Sunshower rather than just read about it. In short: A sunshower, or sun shower, is a meteorological phenomenon in which rain falls while the sun is seen shining. A sunshower is usually a result of winds associated with a rain storm sometimes miles away, blowing the airborne raindrops into an area where there are no clouds.

Key takeaways

Sunshower belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Sunshower to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Sunshower from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

A sunshower, or sun shower, is a meteorological phenomenon in which rain falls while the sun is seen shining. A sunshower is usually a result of winds associated with a rain storm sometimes miles away, blowing the airborne raindrops into an area where there are no clouds. Sometimes a sunshower is created when a single rain shower cloud passes overhead, and the sun's angle keeps the sunlight from being obstructed by overhead clouds. Sunshower conditions often lead to the appearance of a rainbow, if the sun is at a sufficiently low angle.

Names Although the term "sunshower" is used in the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and the UK, it is rarely found in dictionaries. The phenomenon has a wide range of sometimes remarkably similar folkloric names in cultures around the world. A common theme is that of clever animals and tricksters like the devil or witches getting married, although many variations of this theme exist.

The Americas In Mexico, two phrases are common: In northern Mexico, it is said that "a doe is giving birth" (está pariendo una venada), whereas in southern Mexico, it is said that "two elders are getting married" (se están casando los viejitos). In Argentina is referred as "The Monkey at the Wedding of Mirtha Legrand" (El Mono del Casamiento de Mirtha Legrand), the phrase "A hag is getting married" (Se casa una vieja) is also common. In the Southern United States, a sunshower is said to occur when "the devil is beating his wife." A regional variation from Tennessee is "the devil is kissing his wife". Ketchikan, Alaska, is one of the most consistently rainy places on Earth, and has a meter in town to measure "Liquid Sunshine". This makes it an Alaskan Panhandle colloquialism. In Brazil, it's called "widow's marriage" (casamento de viúva).

Asia In Bihar it is called a "siyaar ke biyaah" ("jackals' wedding") with children singing about it. In Garo, it is called "peru bia ka'enga", which means "fox's/jackal's marriage".

In several parts of Japan, such as Kantō region, Chūbu region, Kansai region, Chūgoku region, Shikoku, and Kyushu, sunshowers are called "kitsune no yomeiri" (狐の嫁入り, "the fox's wedding") In Korea, it is called "the day of the fox's marriage" (여우 시집가는 날) or "the day of the tiger's marriage"(호랑이 장가가는 날) In Maharashtra region of India, in Marathi, it is called "Kolhyache Lagna" (कोल्ह्याचे लग्न), which means "marriage of a fox". In Malayalam, it is called "the fox's wedding" (കുറുക്കന്റെ കല്യാണം). In Odia, it is called "the fox's wedding" (ଖରା ହେଉଛି ମେଘ ହେଉଛି, ଶିଆଳ ପୁଅ ବାହା ହେଉଛି). In some Pahari languages of Himachal Pradesh, they say Takri: 𑚌𑚮𑚛𑚖𑚯𑚣𑚭𑚫 𑚤𑚭 𑚠𑚶𑚣𑚭𑚩, ISO: gidaḍīyām̐ rā byāh, meaning "Female Foxes' Wedding". In the Philippines, it is said the tikbalang is marrying. In Sri Lanka, it's called නරියන්ගේ මගුල් ගෙදර (nariyangē magul gedara) which means 'the foxes'/jackals' wedding house.' In the Vietnamese, Rain Shadow Cloud in Sunshower, Mưa Bóng Mây (Thiếu Nhi) Tác giả: Tô Đông Hải.

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Sunshower

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Sunshower claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Sunshower before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Sunshower ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Sunshower

In research: Sunshower appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Sunshower in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Sunshower is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Precipitation, Weather lore, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Sunshower outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Sunshower in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Sunshower means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Sunshower out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Sunshower in simple terms?

Why does Sunshower matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Sunshower?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Sunshower.