| | SUPERADIABATIC LAPSE RATE (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-08-17) |
 | | A super-adiabatic lapse rate is usually caused by intense solar heating at the surface. |
 | | A super-adiabatic lapse rate is common in the Southwest U.S. in the summer, but can occur in most regions of the U.S. in the summer when the skies are clear (maximum insolation), wind speeds are low (limited vertical mixing) and soils are dry (no evaporational cooling). |
 | | Whether a super-adiabatic lapse rate at the surface leads to precipitation is a function of the moisture content of the air, the cap strength, trigger mechanisms, and upper level forcing mechanisms, etc. A super-adiabatic lapse rate in the middle and upper troposphere is rare. |
| www.theweatherprediction.com /habyhints/31 (299 words) |