Consistent with the rest of “the summer that wasn’t” here in Montreal, it rained off-and-on throughout the course of weekend. Yesterday in particular, the intermitent rain and blistering sun was especially pronounced, with no less than a half-dozen downpours separated by periods of bright sun and high humidity as the water upon the roads evaporated before our eyes. Made for some difficult planning/dressing -and I managed to get caught in almost every cloudburst (which starts to get to you after a while let me tell you). My question is: could I have been hit by the same rainwater on more than one occassion? (ie the rain fell on me, evaporated, and then fell on me again?) How about all six times? This would seem to be the ultimate meteorological idignity, more of a taunt really. I know you West Coasters think I’m whining, but you guys get a break in a few months while we suffer through punishing winters. If I have to suffer a lame summer, fine - but don’t tell me I’m being hit with the same rain twice.
But I would guess that you were hit by the same more than once. Rain forms in the clouds which are a ways up in the sky. It would take a while for the evaporated rain to reach the altitude where it would begin to precipatate. By this time the wind that moves the clouds would have taken this moisture away from you.
The Rain could pick up some on the humidty on the way down but I really doubt that Mother Nature means anything by that.
You weren’t hit by the same rain twice. Not even a few of the same molecules.
The ultimate indignity is when the rain is yellow and warm. Then someone is trying to tell you something, big time.
Yes and no, and perhaps. As another poster suggested, the evaporated water probably rose and rained again somewhere downwind of where it originally rained on you. However…
There’s a limited amount of water available on the planet, so every drop of rain that hits you has a good chance of containing a molecule or two of water that has previously rained on you. Another way of looking at this conundrum, though, comes from the old Chinese lesson of the river. You can dip your foot in the river twice, and though it seems to be the same river, the water you dipped in the first time has flowed downstream. The second dip is in a different river. Go figger. Anyway, it’s the same with raindrops. Once fallen, and evaporated, they’re never the same again.