Climate change? Climates are constantly changing. It’s one of the features of this planet.But the heavy rain yesterday had nothing to do with global warming or any of the other catchphrases so popular these days.Put simply, rain happens because ocean water is evaporated by the sun, fills the air with moisture which condenses as it rises and cools to form clouds. Eventually the moisture in those clouds finds its way back to the surface as precipitation, in this case rain. It’s happened all over the world for millions of years. Very heavy rainfall is not unusual in warmer months. They call it the monsoon in some places.What made people notice it yesterday was the large amount of standing water on paved surfaces, mostly because the drains don’t seem to be up to the job now. Who knows, maybe there’s a fatberg lurking under Ealing.But again, that’s not unusual. Paved surfaces are impermeable so run-off is inevitable. It’s why they are building the so-called super sewer along the Thames. Run off even happens on unpaved surfaces if the intensity of the rain is enough. It’s what causes flash flooding in those picturesque towns and villages in places like Cornwall, where the flow off the higher ground swells the local river to burst its banks. Of course, building on flood plains doesn’t help, as many in their desirable riverside apartments find.Yesterday’s rain wasn’t an indicator of climate change. It was an entirely predictable weather event. In fact, it was forecast days before.Perhaps they ought to make geography a compulsory school subject so people can have more understanding and context about the various systems that operate on Earth.
Simon Hayes ● 1545d