It's Raining Cats And Dogs

You may have heard the term "it's raining cats and dogs," and knew that if you stepped outside, you wouldn't see Fluffy or Fido falling from the sky. Instead, you know that the term means it's raining heavily. Rainfall is measured in inches and fractions of inches. A sprinkle is generally one tenth of an inch of rainfall or less per hour, while moderate rainfall is from one tenth to one third of an inch per hour. When it gets heavy and soggy is when it falls at a rate that is over one third of an inch per hour.

There are many different types of rain gauges used to get a rainfall measurement. The first is the standard eight inch rain gauge. The second way to measure new rainfall is by weighing a bucket of rainwater. The third type is called the tipping bucket method. Lastly, there is the high tech electronic rain gauge. Rain gauges can be plastic or glass and are quite a convenient way to determine whether it was just a tiny sprinkle or whether it was raining cats and dogs. They are typically placed on a fence post or any other platform that is without obstruction. There are calibration marks on the side of the gauge, and the rainfall measurements are read directly off of it.

Meteorologists and weather observers use more sophisticated instruments, like electronic rain gauges and tipping buckets to more precisely measure rainfall amounts. A rain gauge should have a wide opening at the top for the rainfall to enter. The rain falls into the container and is funneled into a narrow tube. Because the tube is thinner than the top of the funnel, the units of measurement are further apart than they would be on a ruler to allow more precise measuring, down to the one-hundredth of an inch. If less than one-hundredth of an inch of rain falls, that amount is called a trace of rain. If three inches of rain falls, then it is said to be raining cats and dogs.