Forms of Precipitation:
The form of precipitation in a region depends on the kind of weather or the climate of the region. Common types of precipitation include rain, sleet, freezing rain, hail and snow.
Rain:
The precipitation in the form of water droplets is called rain. The precipitation in which the size of rain drops are 0.5 mm in diameter is known as rain. Generally drizzle takes place from stratus clouds.
Sleet:
The precipitation which takes place in the form of mixture of water droplets and tiny particles of ice(5mm in diameter) is known as sleet. Sometimes raindrops fall through a layer of air below 0°C. As they fall, the raindrops freeze into solid particles of ice. So, the mixture of water droplets and ice particles would fall on the earth surface.
Freezing Rain:
At other times raindrops falling through cold air near the ground do not freeze in the air. Instead, the raindrops freeze when they touch a cold surface. This is called freezing rain.
Hail:
The precipitation which consists of round pellets of ice which are larger than 5 mm in diameter is called hail or hailstones. A hailstone starts as an ice pellet inside a cold region of a cloud.
Snow:
Often water vapour in a cloud is converted directly into snow pieces due to lowering of temperature. The precipitation in the form of powdery mass of ice is known as snowfall. It is common in the polar and high mountainous regions.