Near the Earth’s equator, solar heating is intense year round. The Sun heats the ocean, evaporating tremendous amounts of water. The sun-warmed ocean heats the overlying air, which rises like a hot air balloon. As air rises, it cools, and water vapor condenses into rain. This daily cycle of heating, evaporation, and convection creates a persistent band of showers and storms around Earth’s middle.
The rising air near the equator is replaced by air from north and south of the equator. The Earth rotates beneath this moving air, causing it to turn to the west and creating the easterly trade winds. Because these trade winds converge near the equator, the tropical rain belt is known to meteorologists as the Inter-tropical Convergence Zone.
Monthly average global rain rates. The sequence begins in March, when summer is drawing to a close in the Southern Hemisphere. The highest rain rates on the map (blue) occur south of the equator, and places like Madagascar, northern Australia, and the southern Amazon Rainforest are near the end of their rainy seasons. By June, those places are dry, and Northern Hemisphere tropical locations, including India, Southeast Asia, and Africa south of the Sahara are receiving rain.
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